The Better Homemaking Network

With all of the steps we’ve taken in protecting ourselves physically against swine flu, I was unprepared when it finally reached my circle of influence.

My husband found out yesterday that his co-worker was just confirmed as having H1N1. I immediately went into a tirade of questions: How long has he been sick? What did he touch in the workplace? Was he sick before he left work?
My husband assured me that he has been extra vigilant in keeping his hands clean and not touching his face, long before anyone had a chance of exposure. He hasn’t even been in the same building with this person for three weeks.

But my mind has been in a panic ever since.

Ironically, our family has been sick for a week, because of something I failed to do at church last Sunday. We carefully cleaned our hands and the bench, but I still neglected to protect my family. You see, the little kids in the pew behind us had a mild cough. And my daughter managed to snatch a toy helicopter from them. Normally I’m not concerned; their family is also quite conscientious about keeping things clean, and I know they wouldn’t come to church if they were really sick. It shouldn’t have been a problem, except that my toddler still tends to put things in her mouth.

Wham. The common cold virus at work.

Thank goodness it was just a cold. My daughter had a runny nose for a week, but hasn’t done too badly otherwise. (Would you believe that this is the sickest she has ever been?) I had a little cough and a scratchy throat. My mother ended up in bed for a few days, and my husband got the worst of it. He is still struggling while the rest of us have mostly recovered.

Fear of the swine flu has kept us from going out much this year. Well, there are other reasons, too, and we really prefer being at home, anyway. But it has kept me from attending church as often as I’d like. I really need the spiritual recharge, now more than ever. So why can’t I use my education to overcome the risks, and go get what our family needs most every week?

After a day of my thoughts racing over exposure risks, basic protection procedures, and additional precautions I could take, I finally realized what I hadn’t done.

I hadn’t asked if the co-worker was okay.

Have I uncovered some deep character flaw in myself? No, I don’t think so; normally my first thought is for the person in question, before thinking about how it affects me and my family. But current circumstances have affected my priorities so much that I had forgotten what else was important. I’m thankful that I realized what was happening to my thought processes before it really did change my way of thinking entirely. Of course, my immediate family is most important to me. But I need to be careful not to let problems reduce my circle of concern so much that I begin to fail to recognize the needs of my neighbors, as well.

The economy crisis has definitely blurred the line between need and greed. At the very least it has brought it closer to ourselves; many of us have not prepared and have become more selfish out of necessity, not out of lack of sympathy for our fellow man. Little did I suspect that a pandemic could have much the same effect, and intensify attitudes that have already reduced the amount of selflessness in our society.

I’m glad the warning came to me in time. Preparedness has become even more vitally important to protect our well-being; not only physical, but emotional and spiritual, as well.

I’ll be heading back to church on Sunday, this time more aware of others’ needs in addition to my own.

Update: The co-worker is at home and doing well. Knowing the symptoms to watch for removes most of the danger.