First thing the nurse did, before taking my temperature or looking down my throat, was swab for flu. "Yep, that's what I thought," she said, watching the test register positive almost immediately. "I hear that deep cough and I know."
I had a lot of things I was supposed to do this weekend, and many gracious people have stepped up to fill in for me, hosting the baby shower, directing the chant choir rehearsal, covering PSR class Sunday morning. I guess I need to call down to church and get on the communion list, something I've never done before. I've been Catholic all my life, yet I feel like such a novice.
I've started Tamiflu and am quarantined in my bedroom, and everyone has strict orders not to breath in my face. The incubation period for flu is 48 hours, and that period is nearly up, so scrutiny is intense. God willing, no one else will come down with it.
And no, I didn't have my ever-loving flu shot. I tried, you know. I made appointments at the doctor's office for myself and all the kids, only to be called back and told that they were out of the vaccine. I took everyone down to the walk-in clinic, and found that this one day they'd scheduled a dayful of appointments and had no openings for shots. After that I gave up, and I suppose now I'm paying the price.
So my beginning-of-Lent penance really has been chosen for me. Fasting hasn't been hard -- I don't want to eat anything, and indeed the nurse cautioned me against getting dehydrated. So I nibble a bit, and I lay in bed and ache, and I read when my eyes don't hurt too much. I'm looking forward to when I feel well enough to take a shower, but at the moment the thought of water beating on my skin makes me shudder.
I'm still off Facebook for Lent, so I don't have access to the world of linkage and great articles as I lay isolated. If there's something awesome I should be reading now, share it with me. I got nothing better to do.
Alas, I'm light on linkage at the moment (just finished grading the first paper of the term). But I note that today is the feast of St. Gregory of Narek, and it's a common practice among both Armenian Catholics and Oriental Orthodox to pray through his Book of Lamentations when they are ill; a translation is available online:
ReplyDeletehttps://stgregoryofnarek.am/book.php
Oh, that looks most edifying. Off to pray through it now.
ReplyDeleteThis crossed my Facebook feed and reminded me of you. All things Austen generally do.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.wordonfire.org/resources/blog/the-way-of-shame-moral-education-in-northanger-abbey/26549/?fbclid=IwAR145EymnPrQUzwZ-zpq3U0DwJwp-Xg1OCiFfe2tLOxeeuEA0DhY4wpYdz4
I'm currently reading Northanger with Bella, who is quite incensed at the behavior of her namesake. And who is sometimes short on patience with Catherine. But we read the scene where Henry Tilney shines the light on Catherine's foolishness and I thought it was one of Austen's shining moments. Also where she gets the letter from James about his broken engagement and the Tilneys are so kind and gentle with her, but also help her to see how shallow her friendship really was. It's really a masterful depiction of a kind of moral education that I can onlyhope to aspire to some day.
Oh, Cat! I am so sorry that you have the flu right now. The only links I've got worth sharing right now are quilting links. But I will keep my eyes open for something of more general interest for you. We will keep you in our prayers.
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