Shadows
Edie Johnson- Editorial
If you feel like a shadowy ghost walked in behind you, and get a few goosebumps seeing this front page, then chill. You are probably normal.
Editor's Note: Doing some early Fall cleaning and, emptying a trunk full of miscellaneous, I came across several copies of this January 22, 2021 Orange County Post, and thought it was well worth sharing. Like 911, we should never forget the years the Pandemic came in and turned all of our lives upside down. For one thing, by the time the Pandemic was really over, after nearly 50 years of serving Washingtonville and in fact all of Orange County, owner Everett Smith's health failed and there was no more Orange County Post, and as an editor I felt a call to continue sharing important local news.
Most Americans, and in fact most people everywhere, suffered some kind of PTSD, and likely still have residual trauma hidden in their psyche from experiences during the Pandemic..and some "not so hidden". Consider the mountain of impacts - of personal illness and often loss of lives of friends and relatives, loss of lifestyle and opportunities, especially for seniors..anyone 60 and over who may have had to sacrifice opportunities that they will never be able to restore, financial downfalls and impaired health, and children who's childhood and studies were disordered ... It would not be normal not to have some lasting emotional strain, though we all chip away on it by striving even harder to stay healthy, grab pieces of what we lost, emphasize the opportunities we still have, working diligently, being yet a bit kinder to each other, and trying to grow our faith that there were good lessons from the drawn out tragedy, and recognizing the actual benefits (yes benefits) of lifelong survival skills from what we hope will be the most tragic extended event of our lifetime.
So, yes! While still a little frightening to look at the bad movie that this front page shows in some sense, in another sense it is breathtakingly uplifting. If you survived the worst tragedy of this era, if you came out of it and are still productive, reasonably healthy and still able to experience times of real extended joy., you should be proud, very proud... and grateful.We are in a certain sense "a nation of heroes" for getting through this as well as we did.
Above - Suitably since we suffered both in those years,, the story above was in the same issue.. a reminder that we carried forth during a "double whammy!"
It's clear from these statistics that many of us in rural areas did not take a "direct hit". Blooming Grove, for instance had experienced a total of 1074 cases in a population of 17,609 on that date... which doesn't sound so scary... unless you are one of those who was very seriously ill. But being so near to New York City, less than an hour away, we remember the piles of dead bodies because there was no more room in the funeral parlors. We may shudder for the rest of our lives when re remember that, but fear has a purpose ... to stay vigilant and do whatever we can to remain safe, and as a culture stay immune from future viral invasions, whether protecting through vaccination and healthier living, protection from likely exposure during times and locations of higher infection, with social distancing, and seeking medical oversight and treatment with the vastly improved medications that were developed because of the COVID virus. YES, we made it! We are stronger and wiser and should celebrate our victories. But keep a mask handy....just in case we are in crowds as the cold and virus season approaches. And don't wait for another illness to make efforts at a healthier lifestyle.
One more thing. Take another look at our County Executive, Steve Neuhaus in the picture above. And thank him and all of our other officials, for fighting tooth and nail to get vaccines delivered and accessible, treatments like oxygen available, and how they worked their hearts out to save our lives and improve our health care system.
County Executive, Steve Neuhaus, checking the COVID stats
over and over...and exptlaining what they really meant
Yes, the 2019 Pandemic is over. The challenge to stay healthy is never over, but is one of the most rewarding challenges we are given because the healthier we become the happier and more productive we become and therefore able to be more helpful to others .
Viruses will always be around us. Should you get vaccinated and/or boosted? For most people it is highly recommended . But it's not a guarantee. Use common sense ... even in groups of animals if one is not feeling well it goes off to rest and thereby protect the others. Those of us who are subject to allergic reactions to the vaccine have to think very carefully. Is a reaction worth a much better chance to stay alive? Is it worth feeling safe to give a loved one a hug, If you are in doubt, talk to your doctor about it, and if you are subject to a reaction, ask what might lessen its impact. And remember that last picture you saw of New York City, the one with the dead bodies piled up.
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