Aymia Browder
In March 2020 COVID-19 hit the U.S citizens hard, I felt like it was a true test of my faith and I was being tried through the fire. In the beginning it was frightening to watch the news because there were so many reports made of people checking into the hospital and they were not allowed to have the presence of their relatives. I witnessed the staff members of the hospital in New York load up a giant truck with people in body bags; that was said to have passed away from the Corona Virus. I transitioned from the torment of fear, panic attacks, to the uncertainty of what will life be like a week from now. Eventually the first stage of uncertainty came to a halt.
Due to the pandemic many questions have come to mind, such as how will I provide food for my family? Or is it safe to walk into a grocery store? If so, I can’t go inside without my mask, and gloves. Does this have something to do with 5G towers? Rumors that the President of the United States has brought this to our country to control the U.S population was discussed amongst the people in my community. I received a call from my relative that lives in Los Angeles California, warning me to keep my gun loaded.
I walked into my favorite Walmart with everyone running around frantically, filling up their carts with all of the toilet paper, paper towels, Clorox disinfectants, hand sanitizer, and my favorite goodies. At one point I couldn’t get any bottled water, and I fell ill from drinking water from the tap.
Many people are concerned with the health of themselves and the health of others. The procedures that we have to complete to try and protect our family from something we know nothing about. I may have went overboard with the hand washing, and wearing gloves every time I touched an object in my home; but it was definitely vital in public. It was difficult not to visit my elderly loved ones, who has always needed my assistance. I became grateful when I took a risk, masked up and peaked my face through the door anyhow.
Since we are all family that belong to the body of Tri-C, it has been difficult to grasp the concept of not having physical contact on campus. Most of us made it our business to call and check on fellow classmates and staff as well. Though some of us may have had to cry much more than others, it brings me joy to hear from the remnant of us that are still dominating.
This pandemic has prepared students and staff members of Tri-c to accomplish much more than most of us thought that we could, and we are doing so at a difficult time. I can say that I have had to teach my child his 3rd grade curriculum and continue my online classes as well. All the while I was given an amazing opportunity to study Journalism, and produce articles for the Tri-C’s student newspaper. The opportunity came to tell a story in a magazine of a heroine Tonia Primm, who created mask and donated them to healthcare workers. I also proceeded with my plan to write a script for film; who knew that I would have the time to conquer so many things in this difficult time. As classes change and procedures are rearranged it gets tough, however I am still determined to finish strong.
