A VIRUS JOURNAL April 1
The Blade-Empire is publishing this community journal as an ongoing record of the thoughts of our citizens as we make this journey through the coronavirus crisis.
Tell us what you think; your thoughts, fears and hopes for yourself, loved ones, and your fellow Americans. You may use your name; or you may submit anonymously.
When the pandemic is over, the Blade-Empire will publish the journal as a book. The thoughts of Concordians will become a time capsule and historical record for future generations to remember.
Coronavirus - Worldwide: Infected-885,698 Deaths-44,217
Kansas: Infected-441. Deaths-10
Concordia Police Chief Ric Fredrickson: It's important for people to not panic. This is uncharted waters for all of us. Nobody imagined something like this would happen. So don't get caught up in all the disinformation out there. If everyone does what they're supposed to do, what the experts tell us all to do, we'll get through this. We might have some tough times ahead, but we'll make it through.
Sister Marilyn Wall, Sisters of St. Joseph: At the beginning of Lent I was reflecting on what I hoped for this year. In parishes, the Stations of the Cross were always important, and I would often describe them as a walk in compassion. We walk many walks in our lives, some alone and some with others. This walk is a walk with Jesus through his passion and death. We meet those who reached out to him in mercy and compassion.
We wish that we would have been there too, but in fact, we meet many people and circumstances in our day-to-day lives that are part of this scenario also. As we pattern our lives on Jesus, our lives become his also. We offer presence, ministry and hope along the way and we are inspired and changed by those we meet.
Pope Francis has said: “Lent is a personal journey of Hope.”
As I write this, we are beginning the third week of Lent. Into our lives comes COVID-19… a whole new set of restrictions ... a whole new life style ... a whole new dimension of life. We struggle to know how we are to serve in this reality. We learn about ‘social distancing’ and for me, it seems so foreign to my chosen lifestyle. This is not our charism; we are about uniting neighbor with neighbor and neighbor with God. Yet, as I watch what is happening around me, I see many people finding ways to reach out to others, to the elderly, to children, to everyone. Perhaps we are about creating new outreaches and even new gestures to express our charism.
These times are like none we have ever seen or lived or even imagined. Maybe we need to learn love all over again. By reaching out in compassion we are compelled to love in different and deeper ways.
Many things that had been important to us recede into the background. Necessity becomes the rule. We turn to God more deeply than ever because only God has the real answers and we have to live into them.
Compassion means literally “to suffer with” and we, all of us, are reduced to the same reality. We have to discover what works in our present condition.
We cling to hope and as Pope Francis has said: “Hope opens new horizons, making us capable of dreaming what is not even imaginable.”
Yet, step-by-step we discover it by walking the walk. Just perhaps, in this whole experience are the possibilities of a new world unity. Perhaps more than our differences, we can focus on what we share in common. Our lives had become so hectic. Now is time to hone in on what is essential ... what we as a whole can create that truly is God centered.
The women who walked to the tomb on that first Easter morning were so overwhelmed by the expediencies of life after Jesus’ mortal death that they did not recognize His new physical presence.
They did not dream what was unimaginable, yet Jesus was with them all of the way. Even the cosmos experienced Jesus’ resurrection.
Many who had died returned in that mystic explosion of love. We walk not for ourselves but for all of life and our entire cosmos. We must be “capable of dreaming what is not even imaginable.”
Anonymous: I think the whole thing is blown out of proportion. The flu kills tens of thousands of people every year in the U.S. How many people are INFECTED with the flu every year? Millions. This is just a bad flu with a higher death rate.
A K-State student: It's no surprise Covid-19 is the huge point of contention in the world. A pandemic is, in reality, one of the biggest threats that humanity and a nation can face in the modern world. They have leveled cities, and left entire continents desolate. So, in retrospect, it seems we are incredibly lucky. Covid-19 has an incredibly low infection rate and is limited in those it afflicts and far more so in those it kills. So, when a virus as weak as this, when compared to monsters that were smallpox and the plague, is able to effectively shut down the entire nation and spread the world over in a matter of months, it should serve as a wake-up call. Viruses are host reliant DNA/RNA bound by proteins. They are not even alive. That said, they are the apex predator on this planet. No organic entities have killed more organisms in the history of earth than viruses. Not even close. With that in mind, this crisis could have been far worse. So all I'm asking everyone to do is stay put and don't risk exposure. 90% of that is common sense. I can't go to class or my place of work like every other student and many employees and business owners the world over. We know it's bad. That said, staying home may create one less case. One less passage of the virus on to an elder or individual with breathing complications. It might not seem like it, but keeping your distance and washing your hands can save a life, or many down the road. If we all learn from this situation, understanding how lucky we were that this virus was not the true monster it could have been, we can be ready when something far more dangerous comes to light. Thanks to everyone reading though, stay safe and take care of your family.
Terin Rundus, CHS student: The dictionary definition of value is, “the importance, usefulness, or worth of something.” We each determine the value of relationships or things by our personal needs and desires. Amidst the fright and temporary changes brought on by the Coronavirus outbreak, there are silver linings. For myself, the COVID-19 pandemic has put what I value most into perspective and has influenced my optimism.
Friendships and daily human interaction are two things I value immensely; I am definitely an extrovert. Obviously, quarantining has made this difficult because we are not able to eat out, to attend school functions, or to hang out with friends. Thank goodness for social media and telephones. Am I right? A situation like this reminds me to be thankful for daily non-essential interactions and to reach out, via phone, to others.
As an active high school student, I am constantly on the go. Homework, clubs, sports, and other extracurricular activities fill my and my classmates’ schedules. With the cancellation of sports, traditional school, and activities it forces us to stay home with our families. I have noticed it is almost hard to sit at home and to not have a million things to do. However, this “downtime” is valuable to me. It has given me the opportunity and time to watch movies with my family, bake cookies, go for walks, and sleep in.
In the past, I have not always wanted to go to school simply because I would rather be at home doing what I wanted to do. Since school has transferred online, I have missed the teachers and my classmates. This has made me realize the value of hands-on learning.
There are many ways you can handle the COVID-19 pandemic. You have the ability to see it as a time of growth as a person and nation or to see it as an unfixable disaster. Through this, I have learned optimism helps us face adversity. Stay home and stay safe, and remember we are all in this together.
Please email your thoughts to russell@nckcn.com. In the Subject Line type "Journal Entry'
Or you may write down your thoughts and mail them to:
Blade-Empire
Journal Entry
510 Washington Street
Concordia, KS 66901
Please email photographs of you, your family and friends coping with the crisis. Humor is always appreciated. Email the photos to russell@nckcn.com