Storyteller: Alexander Younce
In early March, Bob, a father of three, was working as a cook at a local food delivery service for senior citizens. When he found out about the pandemic, it was through social media, and it filled him with fear.
He followed guidelines by wearing a mask and social distancing, but not everyone at his work was doing the same. Because of this, he requested time off so that he wouldn’t risk the health of himself or his family. After a few months, his work called him in and told him that he either needed to go to work and risk catching the virus or he would be forced to resign. He tried to go back part time, but after weeks of trying, to no avail, to get coworkers to wear masks, he decided that it was best to resign.
The pandemic caused more than just the loss of his job, but also the loss of many friends as well. Those who were so committed to their political beliefs that they refused to care about the health of those around them were no longer people he could call friends.
He also witnessed deaths of people who he cared very deeply for to COVID-19, and at one point he himself caught the illness. He had been working through food delivery apps and despite all of his precautions still managed to catch it. His recovery was long and arduous, and now, several weeks after his recovery, he still struggles to feel like he is getting enough air when he breathes.
Despite this he still has a quite positive outlook on life; he is glad that he didn’t have a severe case and that he managed to realize early on that he was infected and quarantined away from his family. He says that he is lucky that his circumstances were what they were and that he had the people in his life that he did to take care of him. Above all, he thinks that the pandemic has really shown the true nature of many people that he considered close friends previously.
MIPandemicStory 