On Thursday, March 12, 2020, Governor Michelle Lujan-Grisham of New Mexico issued an order to close all public schools in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Myself and my students, looking forward to spring break in just a week anyhow, were a little stunned on Friday as we discussed the importance of social distancing, how to stay engaged over the three week projected break, and so forth.
Being an inveterate rule follower, I prepared myself and my family to remain at home for the next few weeks. I reasoned that it would be ok to keep previously booked medical appointments, but all other activities were off. I asked my daughter to move back home from her dorm room across town. I forbade my son to have sleepovers. And then the unthinkable happened.
My sister called on the morning of St. Patrick’s Day. (My sister, I might add, is a registered nurse in the Houston area, who is currently under quarantine for suspected coronavirus acquired through community spread.) “Dad is at Mountain View Hospital in the emergency room. We can’t let Mom go. Please go be with him.”
In my self-isolation uniform of leggings, sports bra, and a t-shirt, I was at the hospital within ten minutes, where my father was being assessed for a possible blood clot in his leg. Turns out it wasn’t just one clot, but several, and he was admitted to the ICU following an angiogram which determined the blockage was not going to budge at that time. In the ICU, he was hooked up to a drip of clot-busting medication overnight, and the next day another angiogram confirmed that this process was successful. He still had to remain in ICU one more night, because his blood was basically really watery water at that point.
In the ICU, I overheard a somewhat chilling remark from one of the nurses as I passed the nurse’s station. “They want to know exactly how many patients we already have on vents.” Even though my father was receiving excellent care from a wonderful group of thoughtful and caring professionals, I realized that this same group of people was preparing for a siege.
Thankfully, my father was released and safely home the next day. We have settled back into our self isolation lifestyle and are prepared to stay in our home as much as possible over the next few weeks.
But today, a week and a day after the Governor sent me home from work, the news came that we had been expecting. A confirmed case of coronavirus in my hometown.
The enemy is upon us. The siege is here.
Master of None 