I’m not going to lie. I’m starting to feel the pains. Of atrophy. Of isolation. Of anxiety. Of fear. Of worry. I’m losing my patience, my humor, my creativity. We learned a couple of days ago that Spain was extending the “draconian” lockdown another 2 weeks. That’s a total of 45 days inside this little flat. I could feel the little bit of hope inside me just wisp away to mix with the stale air of my apartment. I thought that maybe some outdoor exercise with proper social distancing for the suburban areas could be allowed, but not yet.
I read a lot about our situation. The word strict had been replaced with Draconian. I could guess the meaning but I wanted to look up the exact history so I could be sure it applied to the Spanish quarantine. Basically, it refers to Draco from Athenian law, where small offenses were met with heavy punishments. It is generally an adjective meaning great severity (Wikipedia). Yup. I think it applies here. I think next may be a page from the South Korea book where a smartphone app is used to track quarantined individuals to ensure they stay home. And while I am complaining and loathing, internally I know that this is the best course of action.
Despite the sensational headlines, the lockdown is working. For both Italy and Spain, our numbers are either peaked or plateaued. This is was the intended outcome so that the hospitals would be able to manage the intake. But it was still overwhelming and doctors had to choose between patients as to who would live and who would die. The stories are just heart breaking.
My hope is that by April 25, there will be such a decline in deaths and infections that some of our “normal” activities can resume. I want to get out and hike! I want to go to the beach and use my umbrella that I bought last year! I want to plan some summer travel because my April vacations have gone down the drain. There is chatter on some of the travel and expat groups that some EU countries may reopen borders sometime in June, but only for travel within the EU. The fear and eye rolling of the groups is that the EU won’t open the borders for travelers from the US for a while. And, I get it! Just today, scrolling through Facebook was this post:
What about the stay-at-home order?
What if this person is asymptomatic and is going to 4 stores to find toilet paper that isn’t even needed?
I don’t even know how to respond to this. I am pretty sure this is one of the reasons why the virus will stick around longer in the US. This behavior is also why the stay-at-home measures may linger longer in the US. And I have hundreds of recent posts that exhibit similar disregard for orders and recommendations. I’m floored and I am mad. Because I need the US to get its act together, shelter-in-place, and follow the damn rules. I need the bans to be lifted and get my friends and family over to Europe so we can continue to explore, travel, and have loads of fun! But, most importantly, I want to see the stats decrease, more lives recovered, and significantly less deaths. So, I will continue to do my part by staying in place. And thank you to all my friends and family that abide by the rules and even go further with the isolation. You are saving lives!
Loosely Lucy 