Settling into a Routine

It’s been two weeks now since we’ve bedded down in our apartment. The only contact that we’ve had with others is the school guards who occasionally check our temperature when we venture near the school gate and random teachers and workers that we encounter on our way to the track to run each day, the latter consisting of a wave and a shouted greeting that happens from at least fifty feet away. Each morning, we’ve established the morose routine of checking the progression of the coronavirus pandemic and praying for all those involved. As of today, there are over 35,000 cases throughout the world, resulting in 724 deaths. The number of cases has been shooting up each day by over three thousand. However, another number has caught our attention in the last few days, and that is the number of recoveries, which as of now stands at 2,355. Thankfully, it too has begun to increase at an accelerated rate.


We’ve also been sorrow-stricken reading the news and hearing that two doctors have died in Wuhan, one from the infection and one from exhaustion. It is so sad. Those doctors gave their lives to help the sick, knowing the dangers. They are truly heroes, and they will not be forgotten.

 
Dr. Xiao Xiang worked for 10 days straight before dying of exhaustion.

Dr. Li WenLiang who helped discover that coronavirus can be transmitted person-to-person died of coronavirus infection.

We have been filling our days with reading, working out, reading the Bible and praying, experimenting in the kitchen, watching the occasional movie, playing with our cats, and preparing for the start of the new semester that sometimes feels as if it will never come. Normally, a two-week break would be a welcome time rife with opportunity, but it’s impossible to enjoy the time, knowing what’s happening all around us and not being able to venture out. We’ve also been spending a lot of time on the phone and social media talking to family and friends. It’s been a lot of fun to connect with people that we don’t often get to talk to. Today, I just realized that I really need a haircut. I’m not sure when my next opportunity to get one will be. Katie offered to trim it for me, but… we haven’t quite arrived at that point yet.

So far, we are doing well. We are just praying like crazy for this pandemic to end.

“I believe that a trusting attitude and a patient attitude go hand in hand. You see, when you let go and learn to trust God, it releases joy in your life. And when you trust God, you're able to be more patient. Patience is not just about waiting for something... it's about how you wait, or your attitude while waiting.” 
– Joyce Meyer

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