NOT GOING VIRAL – How to Survive a Pandemic
There’s a huge difference between a pandemic’s threat to a population and that to an individual. I might catch the virus, suffer for years, even die at its hands, while public health officials are declaring victory because mine was among a small enough number of cases so as not to overwhelm the health care system. By the same token, even if my state or country is reeling from yet another COVID-19 spike, I can still celebrate my own personal triumph each morning I wake up free of symptoms. With success so tentative, so relative, I’m well aware that penning a piece with such a sanguine title as “How to Survive a Pandemic” might tempt fate. Let me be clear, I’m not crowing about a final victory. What I am recognizing, though, is a series of small victories—day by day. (So far, my streak stands at 782. That’s two years, one month and 22 days since the pandemic first impacted Sally’s and my lives.) One more disclaimer: As someone approaching two decades into senior citizenship, and who h