March 8th, 2020 at 9:00 AM
First Unitarian Universalist Church
San Antonio, Texas
I was six or seven and I had the flu. My fever
was high but not high enough to cause brain damage. Edward and Aino, my
grandparents, were staying with us for a few days. My Grandma told me to lie
down on the couch. I didn't know where she was going with that but it's nice to
lie down when feeling sick.
My Grandmother piled blankets upon me until I
began sweating. She worked quickly, knowing exactly what to do. Mother, Joan
Elizabeth, was making dinner in the kitchen. Mom paid attention to her picture
windows, one viewing a field of one hundred acres and one viewing an ancient
Burr oak standing on a ridge of Euler Lake. Aino took advantage of that
distraction. Mother had fully embraced modern medicine. She wouldn't listen
when my Finnish Grand Mother recommended treatments she had learned from her
mother.
Mother felt and thought in a modern way. The old
world with all its merits, the world before antibiotics, was hard for us to
understand from the viewpoint of the late Twentieth Century.
"I'm hot", I said. "Drink this
water. All of it", she ordered. She held the glass for me so I could drink
without letting out moisture as I drank. "Can I get up? This is too
hot". "No, you have to stay under the covers for now. And I believed
her and sweated for more than an hour.
Suddenly, I grew clammy and cool. "I feel
funny. I'm shivering".
"The fever broke", my Aino said to me.
"You will feel better soon. We can take off a few blankets".
When mom called us for dinner, I was no longer
in my PJs. Mom didn't ask. She didn't have to bring me dinner on the couch. On
Monday, I went to school.
If it befalls me to contract Coronavirus, I hope
to drink endless fluids and cover myself with five blankets. Maybe my
grandmother's folk wisdom that healed me once will heal me again. Maybe the
heat of my body will have the power to kill the virus in my blood once
more.
Another medicine from Grandmom’s bag, in case of
flu, I have a jar of Vick's vapor rub that I will rub all over my chest and
apply inside my nostrils, just to drive the powerful eucalyptus down into my
lungs. Grandma Aino b oved to make up a evaporator filled with water and
augmented with Vick’s when our noses got stuffy. I joke that no one has ever
used up a full bottle of Vick’s because a little dab will do ya. I inherited my
current bottle from Grandmom Aino. I deeply wish I were not joking.
Houston has reported five confirmed cases of
Covid-19. I have searched for a single case of the illness confirmed in San
Antonio other than the ones from the CDC quarantine. The AWP Conference went
on, but hundreds of authors cancelled their plans. Diane Zinna, co-director,
resigned in protest after the association decided to hold the conference
The Strip on North Saint Mary’s saw several
off-site readings and celebrations try to draw out those authors who did travel
to town for the Association of Writers & Writing Programs meet. I planned
my route and started at an Airbnb house, a classic Texas house, on Gillespie. A
small publishing house named Madville Publishing wanted to share their books,
their authors and their illustrators with us. A peaceful looking Holstein cow
stares out from the company’s logo. I gladly took the house up on the
offer and met their team. I followed up today by writing the publisher on
LinkedIn.
Hi Kimberly Clark, thanks for a beautiful
evening on Gillespie Street. The AWP events at Paper Tiger and the AMP
room looked rather overlooked. Thank goodness I found a lively crowd at
Highwire Arts nearby. Still, what could compare to the warmth of the Madville gathering?
I also reached out to Nick Gilley, an actor who
has recorded several titles for Madville and contributed paintings to
illustrate books. He had a generous laugh and a deep, comforting voice that must
take the tape well. The home felt comfortable and we drank wine and nibbled on
a bowl of beautiful red and green grapes brought in by Wendy, a therapist the
house has cultivated as an author. I have to look at their book list to learn
if I write in the regional, insightful style the publisher likes to print.
#AWP20
#NickGilley
#KimberlyDavis
#SanAntonio
#Covid-19
#Vick’sVaporRub
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