March 12th, 2020 was the last day I entered my brother’s home. I went by to help with the children since their grandparents had a doctor’s appointment. I played with them and fed them, not realizing that I would not be able to touch them for more than three months.
My brother and his wife worked remotely, and the children had online classes. Going shopping was a thing of the past, instead groceries came via deliveries which were dropped off at the front door. The front door mat saying welcome, became the focal point for fleeting exchanges of goods. Since my mailing address was at their house, any mail I received was exchanged through a small opening in the door. Near to the door was a window below which sat a couch pushed against it. My nephews, one and a half year old twins, and my three year old niece, would climb unto the couch and peer through the window with excitement as I stood outside. My niece would ask “auntie, when am I coming to your house?” or “auntie, are you sick?” as I always had a mask on. This scenario played out over and over and became our reality for three months.
I spent upwards of ten hours in a grocery store surrounded by many people whose covid-19 status was unknown. And so, it was safer to stay away. This was the sacrifice that needed to be made. There was so much that we did not know about this newly emerging disease, but one piece of advice was consistent, “stay home, stay safe”. Fortunately, WhatsApp video calls were truly a lifesaver as almost daily we would chit-chat about what was happening.
Grocery store workers were considered essential.
Like doctors and nurses, grocery workers were considered essential during the shutdown. Each employee was given a pass to present to the police if we were stopped while on the way to and from work. Initially, I resisted being referred to as ‘essential’ as I thought it should be for those on the frontlines coming face to face with the disease and saving lives. As time went on, my views evolved as I realized that the food we sold for physical sustenance, was probably as important as a jigsaw puzzle and gardening supplies were for phycological wellness.
Crowded store environment
Another issue was a numbers one. The ‘stay home, stay safe’ initiative should have meant that there would be less people shopping, that is what I thought. The opposite was true. My store was particularly crowded at times since we opened for fifteen hours daily whilst our competitors, (Safeway, Walmart and QFC) served the public for twelve hours. In addition, I worked at a hypermarket whose offerings were larger and more varied, ranging from apparel, to toys, hardware items, small appliances, and garden supplies. So, I was constantly approached by customers looking for help from the few of us who remain employed.
No mask policy
My store was guided by the CDC guidelines and initially refused to allow us to wear masks. According to them, ‘it would scare customers away’. Personally, I felt that we should have been given the option to wear masks if that was our way of being safe. So, for a few weeks we were working mask free.
With all this exposure, a visit to my family could have possibly been deadly. My immediate family consisted of young children and the elderly so there was no way I was going to risk infecting them. Eventually, I resigned my job, spent fourteen days in quarantine, did a Covid-19 test and then I was all set to revisit my family.
Finally, after ninety-five days I re-entered the house and it was a happy time with family whom I had remotely communicated with. The purposeful social distancing was worth it. Let us do it for family, friends and for the good of all.
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