DR. BLAKE DANIEL PRESCOTT - LOVE IN THE WAKE OF COVID-19

Dr. Prescott has previously published in novel, short story, and poetry formats.
He was in the Phi Kappa Phi Honor society in undergraduate school where he studied creative writing while majoring in psychology and fulfilling premedical requirements. 

​LOVE IN THE WAKE OF COVID-19

ONE
​Benji and the Tree 

​

 “Hey, look at that jerk, he’s huggin’ a tree!” “Where? What are ya talkin’ ‘bout Tommy?” 
“Over there, stupid! Follow my finger. See the little  turd huggin’ that tree?” 
“Oh, Tommy, that’s Benji. You know, the one with the  real good lookin’ sister. He’s got mental problems. You  know Barbara.” 
“That’s Barbara’s brother? Nah! I don’t believe it. He’s  puny!. Hey! Let’s go give him a little what for!” “Barbara won’t like that, Tommy. I thought you had the  hots for her. Benji’s her twin.” 
“Oh bull! She’s twice his size. And he looks like he  ain't put hair over his johnson yet.” 
“I didn’t say they was identical.” He’s in a special  class. My mom’s an aide there. She says he’s hard to  reach.” 
“I’ll show you how to reach him. Follow me.” 
“Oh boy, here we go.” 
“Hey kid, what’s your name?” 
“Didn’t ya hear me? I asked ya for yer name. What is  it?” 
“C’mon Tommy. You’re a big athlete. You don’t need to  put this kid down. It sure won’t help you none with  Barbara.” 
Tommy slammed Benji’s head against the tree with  the heel of his hand. “Now I got yer attention, right? Now  tell me yer name!” 
 Tears rolled down Benji’s cheeks. Cowering, he went  to the far side of the tree, using it as protection. “C’mon Tommy, let’s go play some basketball.” “Just hang on, Mandy, I need to learn this kid a thing  or two. Now tell me yer screwed up name an’ why you’re  huggin’ this damn tree.” 
Tears worked over his cheeks as he inched his way to  the opposite side of the tree. His head faced the tree roots  but his eyes searched upward, hiding behind his  eyebrows, focusing on Tommy. Finally, he spoke, “I don’t  like you.” 
“Hey, he talks! I thought he was just a fake, a little  doll! But he talks! And he cries! He’s just stupid!” “I’m not stupid. I’m smart. You’re stupid!” 
“That does it! Now you’re goin’ to get a good beatin’  … ya little punk. No one calls me names an’ gets away  with it!” 
“Tommy! Look! Here comes Barbara! Oh, boy, this  ain’t good.” 
“Thomas Brandos! What do you think you’re doing?  Get away from my brother!” 
“Hey, screw you! In fact, after I give yer retard brother  here a little what for, I might just let ya have a little of me.” “You’re the retard, Thomas, You’re the one who’s  stayed back twice and still can’t manage multiplication.  Benji’s in a challenging class. Your challenge is to stay off  cigarettes, beer, and swearing. Come on Benji, let’s go  home.”
Grabbing her arm, and causing a book to fall from the  two she was holding, Tommy leered at Barbara, drawing  her close to him. Hey, a little kiss, a little somethin’ else,  maybe a big somethin’ else, and a little promise for more  later, then maybe I’ll let up on your squirt brother.” 
As he pushed his body against her and tried to push  her against the tree, Barbara jerked her knee up between  Tommy's legs, and as he retreated, followed the knee with  a sharp toe kick; then she slammed the remaining book  square in his face.  
“ You haven’t had a chance to learn from that book  yet. You’d be surprised at the powerful message it  contains.” 
“Mandy, I’m surprised at you. You should stop sucking  up to this jerk.” 
“Come on, Benji. Let’s go home.”

​

​TWO
​Sappiance Home

“What happened to Benji? His head is all bruised.” “Well, Ma, truth be told, Benji came out of it pretty  well. I think I broke Thomas Brandos’s nose.” “Oh dear! Is this something I should hear about?” “No worries, Mom. Thomas and his sycophant friend  Mandy were picking on Benji. Well, it was really just  Thomas. Then he grabbed me and forced himself on me;  so I retaliated.” 
“A knee, a foot, a book,” Benji added. “She protected  me … and herself. She had to. He was doing bad things.” “The book got the nose. You don’t want to know what  the knee and foot found,” Barbara clarified. 
“Oh, my gracious! If only I had started teaching at  Lexington Prep earlier … you both could be going there –  tuition free.” 
“Mom, you’re doing just fine and so are we. We’ve  both been tentatively accepted in college, and Benji will  get the special attention he needs there. You’ve done  everything you can.” 
“We visit trees at Lexington,” Benji noted. “It’s better  than books.” 
“What was going on with that big maple today, Benji?” “I was listening. Barbara. It’s a warm week, It could  make a mistake and run its sap.” 
“You see Mom, Benji’s the only one in town who  listens to trees, let alone talks to them. Explaining that to  someone like Thomas is like speaking Korean to him!”
“Oh, Barbara, that reminds me. The Parks are coming  over for dinner. They should be here shortly. There are  some family troubles back home and they need a bit of  people nourishment. Something about a quarantine. Hyo joo will explain it.” 
“I like Hyo-joo,” Benji asserted. “She’s friendly and  smart. She’s never mean." 
“I love Hyo-joo. She’s so bright and perky. Always  upbeat. You’re lucky to have her as a student, Mom.” “She’s a fine young lady. I think she might go into  medicine eventually. Well, it’s very early, but she has no  difficulty in any of her classes and loves the sciences.” “She’s good in botany,” Benji added. 
“Biology with a bit of emphasis on botany since that’s  my passion. it’s a small class but she stands out.”  “She loves trees.” 
“Yes, Benji, she seems to have a special interest in  trees just like you do.” 
“Is Kim coming too? You said the Parks, Mom. Is Kim  Sang-ook coming?” 
“Yes Barbara, Kim is coming too. I’d better get back in  the kitchen.” 
“Barbara loves Kim.” Benji stated this as if everyone  knew and it was almost unnecessary to add. 
“Benji! Close your trap! Kim is a wonderful, extremely  bright young man. He has a wonderful sense of humor; so  it’s only natural that I like to be with him. He talked me into  learning Taekwondo. It comes so naturally to him, I admire 
… well, anyone would admire a young man like him. He’s  fun. Still, he has some growing up to do.” 
A slight smile grew over Benji’s face as he walked  away, saying, “Barbara loves Kim."  
“I’ll help you in a minute, Ma. I’ll just put things away  and then I’ll put a compress on Benji’s head and some  tape over his mouth.” 
“I’m OK. It didn’t hurt that much.”  
“It’s not over yet.”

​

THREE
​The Park Twins

“That’s the door Benji. Can you get it?” 
“Yes Ma.” 
“Hi Kim, Hi Hyo-joo.” 
“What happened to your forehead, Benji?” 
“Oh, nothing. I got too close to a Maple.” 
“Benji was listening for an early sap run and a bully  slammed his head against the tree. Hi Hyo-joo. Just put  your coats on the rack there, Kim.” 
Benji added, “He went after Barbara too!” 
“Oooh, that was a mistake!” Kim spoke to the wall and  his coat as if they were part of the party. 
"I think the bully will remember the encounter longer  than Benji,” Barbara explained with a smirk. 
Hyo-joo handed her coat to her brother and joined  Barbara. "Did he know that you are advanced in  Taekwondo?” 
"I tried to illustrate a toe kick, but he didn’t receive it  well.” 
“And the early sap run, Benji, did you hear any  evidence of it?” 
“No, Hyo-joo, not yet. The trees are smart. They will  wait.” 
“I love your passion for trees, Benji. No one cares like  you do. I’d love to take you for walks in our home area.  Trees are very important to us in Korea. The pine is the  tree of Korea, you know. It stays green in winter, it shows 
us how to go through hardship, as we do now. You would  love Nami, a tiny island just filled with special trees, Benji.” “I’d like Korea. South Korea.” 
“Yes Benji, South Korea is very different, at least now.  We, in South Korea try to keep the past history of our  country alive. We interact with our environment and  appreciate it like you do. Did you know that we have  scientists in South Korea who think like you do, who  appreciate trees like you do? They did a study on older  women in Korea and compared them when they traveled  through the cities – and then again when they walked  through the forests. You know what they found?” 
“The women were happier in the forests. The trees  liked it too.” 
“The women’s bodies were happier. Their blood  pressure was lower, their arteries were more elastic, and  their lungs filled better.” 
“The women, their bodies, and the trees were all  happier. You always make sense, Hyo-joo.” 
“Oh, thank you, Benji, you are so sweet. We share so  much. You continue to be an inspiration for me. You know,  at our home, we have beautiful gardens and lovely trees,  don’t we Kim?” 
Yes, and at least our parents can look out on those  while they are in quarantine.” 
“Quarantine? why are they in quarantine? Is there  some terrible disease going about?” Barbara asked. “Well it’s complicated, isn’t it Hyo-joo? A long story. Do  we have time before dinner?”
“Ma, do we have some time before dinner?” 
A voice from the kitchen replied, “Enjoy your chat.  We’ll eat in a half hour.” 
“Perhaps Hyo-joo can explain it better. I try to make  light of it, and she gets upset. You know, Hyo-joo will let  the rest of us relax. She will do the worrying for all of us,  and she can direct all the serious talk.”  
“He’s impossible. But he knows just as much as I do.  Go ahead Kim, you tell your side. It will definitely be the  lighter side.” 
“All right. You must excuse my simplification. I’m not  the one who wants to go into medicine and loves four  syllable words.” Pausing, to throw a smug smile at his  sister, he continued. “That bad bug that your sometime  doctor-president says is going to go away is considered  very scary in South Korea. We got our first case the same  day you did. Yes, the very same day. The difference is, we  had been burned before and were still smarting eight  years later. You see, we learned. Eight years ago, we had  just one person come to Korea from the Middle East and  then we had an epidemic.” 
“That was MERS. The Middle East Respiratory  Syndrome,” Hyo-joo explained. 
“What did I tell you? She can’t resist.” 
Hyo-joo stuck her tongue out at him. 
“As I was saying, this virus, this microbe, this MERS,  taught our health authorities a lesson eight years ago; so  they were prepared. When they found out that a new  germ, a new Corona virus, much like the past MERS, was 
causing trouble in China, the KCDC was ready. Then,  when that first case came to South Korea, the same day it  came to the United States, our pencil pushers and our  medical folks got together and traced all the people that  this one person contacted; and then traced the contacts of  the contacts, and then the contacts of …” 
“Kim, they understand. They also understand your  prejudice for your country, and hopefully forgive your  emphasis on that.” Hyo-joo directed her further  explanation to the Sappiance twins. “Kim’s pencil pushers  are our Korean Center for Disease Control, our KCDC.  Evidently the contacts ran into thousands. Anyone with a  significant contact was isolated, ‘voluntarily’ if you will,  which means they were put into quarantine.”  “It is voluntary isolation.” 
“That’s what I said, Kim. Kim is not so light hearted as  he appears. You see him defending his country here and  not so subtly criticizing yours. He thinks you won’t notice.” “Quarantine?” Benji asked. 
“Yes, Benji, quarantine, as Hyo-joo says. But it could  be worse. Quarantine used to mean 40 days and 40  nights. Now, they pick a number that is different depending  on the bug. So they decided on two weeks. That’s what  our parents are facing. Two weeks of isolation, looking at  their garden, being alone but being looked after as well.  They have friends dropping off food. Everyone keeps a  long lance distance from them, but friends look after  them.”
“Wow, that seems excessive, Kim. Our president says  this is something like a cold. It’s just going to go away.  He’s not making a big deal out of it. Don’t you agree,  Benji?” 
“He’s not a doctor.” 
“Benji and I have somewhat different political slants. I  guess we are like you. Twins with different views, more  like, well … Please do go on. What happened with that  MERS bug, Kim? That was a Corona virus as well?” 
“Yes. And that is where we were burned. We still don’t  know the details. There was a lot of hush hush, a need for  secrecy in the beginning. But what turned into an epidemic  was evidently due to just one person. The government  didn’t want to scare people so they didn’t tell them what  was going on.” 
“Like we do now,” Benji added. 
“Benji, now, you hush! Go on Kim.’' 
“It’s all right Benji. I understand. Yes, we have the  same problems. Not just in government, but between twins  too. This MERS came to us late. It had been around for a  few years before it came to South Korea. When it came, it  was bad. It spread from Sunchang to Sokcho in the north;  it spread even as far south as Jeju. That’s our island off to  the south. So it was everywhere from south to north; and  from east coast to west coast. Of course our country is  very small, but in spite of efforts to contain things, I think  they had nearly 200 cases that were ‘definite,’ one  hundred and eighty some odd – and two out of ten died.” “Oh my, two out of ten!” Barbara exclaimed.
“Still, South Korea did better than the global  
averages. Instead of two out of ten dying, as in South  Korea, the global figures usually cite three to four out of  ten … and sometimes more. South Korea did well with just  under a 20% mortality. MERS was a real killer. We know  we can’t really depend upon exact figures. It’s like it is  here. Sometimes we get only a few teaspoons of the truth  out of the bowl.” 
“That’s not what Samchon says. He says the virus  changed as it went from place to place.” 
“Samchon is our uncle. He’s a doctor and a guiding  light for my dear sister.” 
“He was there, in Hong Kong, for the first one!” “True. That was the first. It was the first of these three  maladies. That was SARS one. We pretty much escaped  that one, but Samchon, our uncle, was unfortunate  enough to be in Hong Kong where it was raging at the  time. He ended up being recruited to help. We have heard  that story many times. It all happened around the time that  we were born, but we now know it as if we lived it. That’s  what uncles are for. It makes us seem, and feel, a lot older  … and wiser.” 
“Samchon is a wonderful and brave man, Kim! One  out of six died then, in Hong Kong.” 
“Samchon varies the story a bit. And the figures are  probably not that dependable either. It was a serious germ  and he was lucky to escape alive.” 
“So," Barbara queried, “this is a bit confusing, Kim.  Your uncle, your Samchon, he was there for the first one, 
that was in Hong Kong. Then there was, what was it,  MERS, but we have still another? These two or three  microbes are all closely related, Kim?” 
“Yes, all in the same bad family. They are all Corona  viruses. The first one started in China, like this one. That’s  the first SARS or Corona virus. That’s the one he fought in  Hong Kong. Samchon has many names for it, none of  them nice.” 
“What’s SARS?" 
“Sorry Benji, I should have explained. SARS stands  for Sudden Acute Respiratory Syndrome. It’s a bad  disease that makes you very, very sick.” 
“SEVERE, acute, respiratory syndrome, Kim. You  see, Barbara, he’s not so smart as you think he is.” “He’ll do. So the first one and this one came from  China.” 
“Samchon says they start in the wet markets. Excuse  me for taking over dear brother. But I revere Samchon,  and his explanations, more than you do. Samchon has  urged Kim to go into medicine and Kim always finds an  obstinate alternative. These are viruses. Samchon says  they are big viruses but since they are viruses you still  can’t see them.” 
“Not unless you carry an electron microscope around  with you.” 
“Quiet, Kim! They are little tiny balls shaped like  crowns, that’s why they call the family the Corona family.” “Or, it’s like having a beer in Mexico.”
“Kim! I gave you a chance. Just let me finish and  defend Samchon. He says that they start in the wet  markets where different animals are gathered – animals  that would never be so close together in nature. Corona  viruses love to live in bats, especially horseshoe bats. But  they live in other animals too, like civets, and many, many  other animals. The MERS virus, the one that came from  the Middle East, loves camels. When they go from one  animal to another, that’s when the big trouble starts.  Whether it’s in a bat, a civet, a camel, a pangolin, or  whatever, going from there to a human is when it really  gets bad. That’s when the virus jumps.” 
“Jumps?” 
“Yes, Benji, jumps. It jumps from one kind of animal to  another; and when it does it becomes especially virulent.” “She means that it gains strength and makes people a  lot sicker.” 
“Thank you, brother. I do need your help! You see, he  pretends not to know anything and hopes to know  everything at the same time. He is impossible. But yes, he  is my twin, and I give him his fair chance, Yes Kim? You  see, no answer, just a nod. If he can’t win, he doesn’t play.  Now, back to Samchon. Samchon says these Corona  viruses love to change and you never know what they are  going to do.”  
“This is the same germ, the same virus, that we have  here now?” 
“Yes, Barbara, or at least almost the same. It’s sort of  one, two, and three. Three variations. All bad. But because 
we had so much trouble with number two, that was MERS  in South Korea, we were extra ready for number three.”  “And that’s why your parents are in quarantine? Are  they sick?” 
“No, they are fine … so far. But it can take a couple of  weeks for the virus to show itself as an illness. That’s why  the quarantine. Samchon, our uncle stays near our  parents and keeps us informed.” 
“So,” Barbara concluded, “there is a family of viruses,  this Corona family, and it has had three escapees that  have been like plagues. This one now is the third. Your  uncle was there for the first which was around the time we  were all born, so the story of the viruses spans our lives;  and the third one, the one that is causing your parents to  be in quarantine, is the one that is unleashed now. Is that  right?” 
“You see how she listens to you Kim? You want to  make sure you don’t make mistakes. Barbara, you have  summarized things very well, but you have ascribed a little  more credit to my brother than he deserves. We hope for  the best.” 
“As do we!” Barbara averred. 
“Dinner!” 

​

FOUR
​Keep them Guessing

“That was a fine meal, Mrs, Sappiance, thank you.”  “It wan’t any trouble and it was a pleasure to share it  with you. I’m so sorry about your family.” 
“Hyo-joo and I feel especially … well, being this far  from home, you know, it’s difficult. But you are like a  second home. We thank you. We must be getting back to  our dorm.” 
“Mom has a meeting and Benji wants to come and  visit with the campus trees this weekend. Perhaps we’ll  run into each other, Kim.” 
“I hope so, Barbara. Will I see you in Taekwondo?” “Monday afternoon! Remember how they responded  when we told them we were twins?”  
“Oh yes, I can’t forget that one. They thought we were  twins and yet were baffled by how that might be. We  raised a lot of eyebrows on that one.” 
“Like in Taekwondo, keep them guessing.” 
“Two sets of twins.” Mother Sappiance added. “Each  individual so different. My, my, Gregor Mendel would have  had a field day here.” Then she retreated to her kitchen.

​

FIVE
Acacia

“This is a copper beech.” 
“Yes, Benji, I believe you’re right. We should have  signs on all the trees. Then the students would be more  likely to learn their names. This is a very old tree. It’s been  here a long time.” 
“No, Ma. It’s a youngster like me. Beeches have a  very long life. This one makes it harder. It’s not green. It  has anthocyanins.” 
“You’re right. I have a meeting. Can I leave you here  by yourself? I don’t know where Barabara ran off.” “She wants to see Kim.” 
“Be here when I come out. I should be about an hour.” “OK.” 
“What are you doing?” 
“Petting the tree.” 
“Petting the tree?” 
“Yes, to make it feel loved.” 
“You think trees have feelings?” 
“They do.” 
“How can you tell?” 
“Different ways. Sometimes I smell it.” 
“Really?” 
“Yes. You like trees?” 
“Yes, and no. Yes, I like trees, sometimes I love trees.  I used to love trees. I come from a place where we have  an immense forest. It’s beautiful. But trees can be 
dangerous too. Up north, many people get hurt from  trees.” 
“People hurt people more than trees hurt people.” “Well, that’s an interesting observation. I believe I  understand what you’re implying. Anyway, back home, up  
north, we have lots of trees but not many great schools.  That’s why my father sent me here to study. My father  takes me for long walks in the forest. There’s so much to  see there.” 
“Your father must be very nice.” 
“He’s very special. He really knows the trees and their  friends. He sees a scarlet tanager and says, ‘Look, it’s  where it loves to lite, on the top of that American  Sycamore.’ Then he tells me about the fungi – the  mushrooms we can see, and the mass of fungi that we  can’t … under ground. That’s really the important fungi.” “That’s how trees talk.” 
“Pardon me?” 
“Trees talk to each other different ways. They do it a  lot using fungi.” 
“I think you would enjoy walking in the woods with my  father.” 
“I like your father.” 
“What’s your name?” 
“Benji.” 
“My name is Acacia.” 
“No.” 
“Yes. It’s a very unusual name. It’s the name of a  flower and a tree.”
“I know. It’s beautiful.” 
“Thank you, Benji. Do you have a last name, Benji?” “Sappiance.” 
“Oh my. Are you related to Mrs. Sappiance? She’s my  botany teacher. Well, I really shouldn’t say that, It’s  biology. But she teaches the botany part so well, and I  enjoy botany so much, I think of her as my botany  teacher.” 
“She’s my Mom.” 
“Oh, how wonderful! I love your mother!” 
“I love her too.” 
“Of course. What a treat this is for me. Do you go to  school here? I don’t believe I’ve seen you before. I’m sure  I’d remember.” 
“I go to Damon Public. I’m in a special class. Some  parts of me are ahead and some are behind.” “Well, your tree knowledge and feelings certainly  aren’t behind. Do you have any favorite trees?" “I like the ones my age. I mean for trees. The beech  over there, it’s my age. It’s about a hundred years old. But  that’s just a kid for beech.” 
“You know a lot about trees besides their feelings do  you?” 
“I know about you and your tree, Acacia. You have a  big family. Your cousin in Africa is beautiful, like you. It has  lots of pretty orange flowers like your hair and your  freckles. Your face is full of beautiful flowers. Your tree has  leaves that are tasty to giraffes. When a giraffe nibbles the  leaves, it hurts the tree, and she sends messages to her 
brain in her roots, and then, the brain sends a bad toxin to  the leaves to make the giraffe go away; and she also  warns her sisters. That way she can stay beautiful and not  hurt too much, and she helps her family. Then the giraffe  has to go a long way to the next tree to find one that  wasn’t warned.” 
“It warns the other trees?” 
“She sends out ethylene. It warns them. They smell  the ethylene. Then they make the toxin too.” 
“Oh my, I’m growing fond of you, Benji.” 
“I’m different.” 
“You certainly are, in a very nice way.” 
“My body is slow.” 
“Well, your mind isn’t.” 
“Some parts are. Some parts are very fast. Numbers  are easy. I can do cubes. Do you want to hear me do  cubes?” 
“Cubes?” 
“Yes, I’ll do simple one. like 2. Like this, 2, 8, 512; you  know, you just keep cubing. You can do it different ways.  You can make games out of it. For instance, you can do  three cubes for each number. Start with 2 and go to 3 and  then to 4 and 5. So 4 would be 4, 64, and 262,144. 5  would be 5, 125, 1,953,125 … well, you get the idea. It’s  not fun for everyone. It’s not nearly so much fun as trees  but it passes time when there’s nothing else – or when you  want to go into yourself.” 
“I’m not sure I understand.” 
“Some people don’t like me. They make fun of me.  They make me turn quiet. I have to go inside then.” “Inside?” 
“Inside myself. They make me want to be alone.  They’re mean. They’re not like trees. Mean people want to  hurt just to be mean. Trees hurt only if you hurt them.” 
“Oh my lord. Benji. You can’t believe how important  this meeting is.” 
“You make it easy for me to talk.” 
“Can we walk around the trees together for a little  bit?” 
“I would like that, Acacia. You’re very pretty. You’re  nice, too. You understand, trees have feelings.” “Yes, Benji, and I’m beginning to understand.”

​

SIX
​Barbara & Kim 

"So, you whipped the star athlete.” 
“Oh, not really. First, he’s not really a star, except in  his own mind. He’s not going to do any horseback riding  soon, and his nose is a tad squashed.” 
“I’ll have to keep you around to look after me” “You’re quite capable of caring for yourself, Kim.” “You’ve been accepted in college, Barbara.” 
“Yes, and no. Yes, tentatively. Everything is tentative  now. But it’s one we can afford. I can live at home and  help Mom and Benji.” 
“And what about Benji?” 
“He was accepted there, too. I think it’s more than  tentative for him. They can’t get over his abilities with  numbers.”  
“He’d be going to the same school?” 
“Yes, if it all pans out. I think they’re more excited  about having Benji than Benji is about joining them.” “He’s a fine boy, or, you know, sorry, young man. In  some countries, he’d be drafted into the service next year.  Sorry, I tend to put things into different context. You  remember we have North Korea as our neighbor.” “Benji in the service. Now that brings up a startling  image.” 
“You’re very patient with him.” 
“There are times when Benji wouldn’t agree. We have  opposite views on many things. Politics is one. We have 
our innings. Just like you and Hyo-joo. And you, Kim. What  are your plans for next year?” 
“I’m not sure. I’m interested in a couple of universities  here, but they would cost a lot and Samchon would like  me to attend university at home. He keeps trying to push  me.” 
“And you resist.” 
“Not really so much. I don’t know what I want to do.  Not yet, anyway. I don’t like being away from you.” “What about Canada? Have you thought about going  back there? That’s where you and Hyo-joo honed your  English so well. You made many friends there. I thought  you had a girlfriend there.” 
“I said that just to make you jealous.” 
“Oh, Kim, what am I to do with you?” 
“You could … let’s see, you could be warmer, closer,  and … more inviting, less serious, and …” 
“You should be a bit more serious, Kim.” 
“I could take an extra year; not here at Lexington –  unless they would let me. Perhaps another school nearby.  A postgrad year. It would give me time to decide. More  time to think …” 
“More time to play, more time to delay, more excuses,  Kim?” 
“True, you see … well, as we both know, you see too  much. But, if I did that, I’d be learning just as I would  anywhere else, and I’d be here.” 
“And you wouldn’t have to work so hard.” 
“We could be close.”
“I better not say anything. You should do what is right  for you. You know how I feel, Kim. What about Hyo-joo?” “Well, she can take an accelerated course back  home. It would save her a year and she could go on to  medical school.” 
“What if she changes her mind?” 
“I don’t think that’s going to happen.” 
“Maybe you should just tell Samchon that Hyo-joo is  really a boy in disguise.” 
“He’s really proud of her. I think he just doesn’t want  to see me go off in some derelict path.” 
“Derelict?" 
“He wants me to be serious, too serious. I do need a  little time to play. You grow up only once, and once you’ve  grown up, you have to be … well, too serious. There’s lots  of time.” 
 “Oh, Kim, you are impossible. You refuse to grow up.  What am I going to do with you?”

​

SEVEN
​The Faucet Opens for Benji 

You could hear the rain pounding on the panes,  demanding an entrance and occluding a view of its outside  agitation. Preceding it was a gray day, drizzling discomfort,  drizzling steadily for hours; together, the drizzle and the  rain, promised to melt what snow was left, offering a  premature change in seasons.  
In deference to Benji’s feelings and preference, they  collected and burned only standing dead wood for their  small, soapstone stove – their source of living room heat.  On dank, dark days like this one, the stove drew the family  together, adding another personality to the room, and  inviting a different tone of conversation. Piano music  streamed in from the next room, familiar melodies  punctuated by an occasional dissonance and grunt of  words better forgotten.  
“Mom should practice more.” 
“Or maybe less, Benji.” 
“She loves music.” 
“That’s what makes her swear.” 
“She misses Dad.” 
“We all miss Dad, Benji.” 
“It’s not fair.” 
“You’re right about that one, Benji. 
“I met a very nice girl.” 
“You’re kidding.” 
“No, I’m not. She’s very nice.”
“That’s not … never mind. Tell me about her. I’m all  ears.” 
“Her name is Acacia, like the flower, like the tree. She  goes to Mom’s school. I met her when you went to visit  Kim.” 
“Don’t stop there, Benji. Tell me more.” 
“She’s very smart and very pretty. Her face is filled  with flowers that match her hair.” 
“Her face is filled with flowers! Explain a little more?” “She has freckles.” 
“Oh, of course.” 
“She wanted to walk with the trees. I told her cubes  but she liked trees better.” 
“Yes, do go on.” 
“Her father lives in the woods. He taught her about  trees. She knew all the trees we talked to. She didn’t know  what the Acacia tree does when it hurts. I told her. She  liked that story.” 
“That’s lovely, Benji.”  
“She wants to visit again. She has a bad leg. Or  maybe both legs are a little bad. She doesn’t move fast.  Mom says she’s special. She’s advanced.” 
“Oh my, Benji, this sounds serious.” 
“She’s serious but she’s fun. She knows all about  botany and biology. She’s writing a paper on viruses.  Viruses hurt plants just like they do animals.” 
“Acacia sounds like a very special person. I can’t wait  to meet her.”
“She’s short, like me. She has a special uncle just like  Kim and Hyo-joo. He’s a doctor but he’s a doctor for cows  and pigs.” 
“He’s a veterinarian?” 
“Yes. He gave her the idea for the virus paper.  Because she’s advanced, she has to write a paper. She  plays chess too.” 
“It sounds like you two had a long conversation.” “It was mostly about trees. She loves trees like I do.  She explained about different mangroves and how they  work with salt water. They’re pioneers. They’re pioneers  on the shore.” Benji paused and smiled. “She’s funny too.” “She’s funny?” 
“Yes, she asked me if I knew what the record was for  the hundred yard dash in a red mangrove swamp.” “A hundred yard dash through mangroves? They’ve  got all those twisted roots. You can hardly move through  them. You remember when we visited Andros? You  remember the red mangroves there? I’m sorry, Benji, she  may have been mistaken.”  
“She wasn’t. She made a joke. The hundred yard  dash record through the red mangroves, that was a joke.” “And the answer, the joke, was?” 
“That’s what makes it funny. The answer was two  days.” 
“Did you laugh?” 
“I giggled for a long time. She’s very pretty, and she’s  really nice. She’s been to the Amazon.” 
“Really!”
“Yes, and she told me how different the trees are  there. It’s a rain forest – thick with trees but the soil is  skinny, so the trees need extra help to stay up. Many  have buttresses – like old churches; they have extra little  
trunks, something like the mangroves but they don’t do it  for air and getting rid of salt, they do it to stand up in the  thin soil. They stand up like churches in the rain forests.  It’s a place where you can pray.” 
“Oh Benji, this is beginning to sound very serious.” “She told me more about the rain forests. There are  lots of animals that eat the trees, especially insects.The  trees are almost all different and they live very close  together. They show how you can be different and still be  part of a big family. The trees make lots of poisons to keep  from being eaten, but when a tree falls and makes an  opening, an opening to the sunshine, the neighbors stop  making the poisons and put all their energy into growing;  they try to fill the opening. They have to grow fast and put  up with being hurt by insects eating them. Later they make  poisons again. They measure everything by hectares  there.” 
“Wow, Benji. I haven’t heard you go on like this.  Acacia really made an impression on you.” 
“Her father is a forest expert. He’s traveled all over the  world. He took her too. He lives with trees. He knows  about the medicines in the trees too.” 
The music stopped with a dissonant bang and a few  words, “Those are too many damn flats!”
“What are you two up to?” 
“Benji has been telling me about Acacia! I’ve never  heard him go on like this.” 
“Oh yes, Acacia is a delightful woman. She’s small,  and looks very young, but she’s a woman. Like you and  Benji, she’s older, but young. You and Benji are older than  most in your class. That was my fault. When your father  died. Well, I’m not going into that again. It all turned out  well. I think Acacia has yet another year on you. She was  kept out of conventional schooling for awhile, just like you  were. I’m not sure what her delays were for. She’s taking a  post grad year now. For her it’s more of a concentration on  a few areas. I think she’s trying to decide what her next  path might be. I’m really fortunate to have her in my  biology class. She teaches me as much as I teach her.” 
“She certainly has made an impression on Benji.” “Well, if truth be told, I think he made an impression  on her as well.”

​

EIGHT
​SARS, MERS, & COVID; The Familia Corona

Near the shores of southern New England, there was  little hint of the snow pack up north, yet there was talk  here, as there was elsewhere, of filling the northern  chalets with the adolescents and young adults bestrewn  over the country; indeed, this might be necessary rather  than an option. This was considered to be an exceptional  suggestion, but this was an exceptional and, indeed,  singular time. There was no pattern for people to follow. All  this was because of the virus. 
The virus was a 'lead in' to each conversation, a back  stage player who loomed over stage front, a concern and  imminent threat to pockets of our country, an ongoing  menace in some areas of the world, a threat to spread  both locally and distantly, and a ripe source for conjecture  since so little was known about it.  
The corona virus had spread into the West Coast of  the States. There was some talk of isolating students  there, of reverting to media teaching, and doing mandatory  testing of students and faculty for the virus. The testing got  little heed since testing measures were already noted to  be in short supply, dearly needed in the hospital setting,  and – reputed as unreliable. Preventative measures, like  wearing a surgical mask, were pushed by many but  governmental and authoritarian advice indicated they  might be relatively useless; in any case, they were needed  and used by those confronting active cases and were also  in very short supply. There was no singular voice; there 
was only a spectrum of rumor. One of those rumors was  that some schools might suspend class – particularly  those in hot bed areas. This could necessitate sending  students from prep schools and colleges back home. It  was said that they would pose a risk to those whom they  would contact on coming home, especially the old and the  infirm. So this is why folks were talking about using the ski  chalets as a natural retreat for this healthier, more  resistant, arguably risky, and possibly less compliant  segment of society. 
Advice had no common denominator. People were  advised to stay in, unless they were advised to go out,  they were advised to wear a mask, unless they were  advised not to wear a mask, they were advised to go to  work, unless they were advised not to go to work, they  were advised to stay apart unless they needed to be  together. People were told the virus would go away in the  warmer weather, but it was starting to thrive in the  southern hemisphere where it was warm. There was no  strident voice with a clear message. The ridiculous  overrode the sensible and scientific. 
Rumors were rife. Celebrities became authorities on  viral nuances. Government officials offered almost every  imaginable, varying view. This was nothing and it was  going to go away on its own. This was serious and  warranted strict quarantine, This wan’t happening. This  was devastating and was the fault of … and then there  would be a wide choice of what and whom to blame. 
There was no limit to the social media offerings and  no shortage of exaggerated claims and cures. Gargling  with warm salt water would prevent it, a temperature in the  low 90s – below human body temperature – would kill the  virus, swallowing would kill the virus once hitting the  stomach acid, garlic would both prevent and cure the  problem (as well as keeping vampires away).  
The virus acquired different names: Corona virus,  novel Corona virus, SARS Corona Virus, the SARS part  indicating Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, but then  there had been two other SARS, so this was either  number three – or, it could be number two. If you didn’t  count the second one as a SARS – since it was called  MERS, meaning Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, this  was only number two. Confusing. The first SARS was now  referred to as SARS Cov-1, and was getting further  attention in its now nearly 18 year old wake. This present  one was being called SARS Cov-2 but that held the  tongue in play a tad extensively.  
MERS, too, was getting a closer second look, but  generally retained its original name, not succumbing to the  further and, arguably, more appropriate MERS-CoV  identification as a Corona virus. Its origin and attachment  to the Middle East, particularly the Arabian peninsula and  neighboring Jordan, was its major moniker. Indeed, since  the largest outbreak of MERS outside of the Arabian  peninsula was in South Korea, and that was the result of  only a single infected traveler returning from Saudi Arabia,  the Middle East was imbued to the malady, along with its 
purported reservoir of camels. MERS was largely re examined to shed light on the present Coronavirus  problem, especially since MERS seemed to almost go  away on its own, going away only after having wreaked its  havoc some 5 to 8 years previously. 
Long lasting and serious aftereffects of both SARS Cov-1 and MERS were being unearthed. Long lasting and  some permanent neurological complications associated  with those two afflictions were now seen in a different light  since they might well apply to the current scourge. 
This latest one, this present epidemic, evidently  started in December of 2019, in the Wuhan area of China.  Was it a Wuhan virus? Might it be a Chinese plague like  the Spanish flu? Shortening the longer tongue twisters,  most people settled on calling this third one simply  COVID-19. This covered COrona VIrus Disease and  indicated it to be first noticed in 2019; case closed. It was  one of those three Corona viruses causing severe  disease. And, like its sisters, this COVID-19 wasn’t just a  respiratory problem, it could be a GI problem, or a heart  problem, or a skin problem, or a blood vessel problem. There were still other corona viruses that affected man,  but these caused illnesses akin to colds; so only the big  three were counted. Apparently no one paid attention to  the Corona family members that did so much in so similar  a fashion to animals other than man. One had resulted in  the killing of three million pigs in one year. No one talked  about that, but the pigs probably remember it well.
Little was certain. There was a lack of international  agreement as to the definitive qualities of the virus and  there was a minimum of international cooperation. Efforts  to share experience, share testing, and share personal  protective equipment, or PPE, too often went wanting,  while rumors continued to balloon and spread. There  seemed to be an overriding dictum not to share knowledge  but to spread blame. Countries had individual problems  since they acted individually. States were to fend for  themselves. Blame was left to land wherever and  whenever the wheel and the music stopped. 
Practically every conversation somehow invited  COVID-19 into it. Everyone became an authority.  Multitudes made statements asserted as facts, but with  uncertain foundations, The virus started in the wet markets  in Wuhan, China. The Corona virus family has many  reservoirs, in a wide variety of animals. Bats are a major  reservoir. In wet markets animals are brought into  unnatural proximity; therefore, this is a natural place for  the virus to jump and spread. No, it didn’t come from the  wet markets, it came from a laboratory in Wuhan where  they were doing research; this was an escapee. It started  in a seafood market in Wuhan. No, this was a chemical  weapon developed by the Chinese. The stories of illness  and death in China are all exaggerations; this was  unleashed purposefully. You could choose your story and  find no difficulty in finding adherents.  
Once the conversation started, the two sister  scourges, SARS -1 and MERS soon became attendees. 
The death toll from each of those two previous Coronas  was generally cited as 20 to 30%, an impressive and  frightening figure. COVID-19 was being noted as closer to  6 or 7%, but figures varied as much as did the stories of  the origin or presentation of the illness. There was little  that was certain, much that was controversial, little that  was confirmed, and much that was charged with emotion  rather than erudition. 
As to the two preceding Corona viruses, these two  sisters, once unleashed, spread their wrath over a half  dozen countries and lasted for two to three years. And  then they virtually disappeared. No treatment, at least  none that reliably killed the virus, no vaccine, at least none  for humans, became available. Still these two preceding  menaces disappeared on their own. Wny? How? No one  knew. Would this present virus, this COVID-19 act like a  member from the past? Would it be different? What was  predictable? Was this an epidemic? Could this be a  pandemic? 
A flood of statements was constantly in the process of  being fact checked; nonetheless, the errors,  
misunderstandings, misleading assertions, and purposely  prejudicial seductions had left their imprint and, indeed,  only a determined few waited to review subsequent factual  analyses. 
Many perpetuated the initial rumors. Depending upon  how the rumor fit with personal bias and personality,  proselytes emerged to foster a variety of causes.

​

NINE
​Local Effects

This was a time of uncertainty, concern, and  understandable fear. The Sappiance family was no  exception. The public high school as yet had no restriction  imposed due to the virus; people gathered as before.  Classes met as usual, athletic events were unchanged,  and the auditorium periodically filled. 
Athletics at Damon High were revered by parents. It  was one of the areas where the school stood out. It also  kept the students in a safe haven when parents were at  work. 
Many of the parents of the public school students  insisted that the threat of this virus was overblown and the  current response was an overreaction. They further  insisted that if classes were to be modified or suspended,  the school should provide oversight and safe gathering  places, particularly for the younger students. The parents  could not afford to give up their jobs to supervise, let alone  teach, children. Strong feelings from parents were echoed  by offspring, dividing the school into factions.  
Tommy and Mandy thought this was all a hoax.  Tommy said he’d start a bonfire on the baseball diamond if  they canceled any of his games. He boasted how no virus  could stop him. He’d go catch it just to prove it! Tommy,  himself, started a quip which he proudly repeated  countless times.  
“It’s like chicken pox. You get it and you get over it.  Only chickens don’t get it.” Somehow, Tommy developed a 
small but steady cadre of students who touted and  shouted his mantra. They taunted, jeered, humiliated, and  challenged their fellow students.  
“You’re with us or you’re chickens.” That was Tommy’s  opening statement, and, too often, followed by a physical  punctation mark. And where that didn’t seem to be  enough, he’d have his crew join him in “pantsing" people.  This was very effective in reducing opposing views.  
Barbara gave advice to Benji. “Stay away from  Tommy’s gang. And, remember, Benji, we go home  together.” 
Thanks to the virus, Tommy was becoming more of a  hero at Damon Public – or, in the eyes of an apparent  minority, an anti-hero. 
It was rather different at Lexington Prep. There was  no gang demanding a singular point of view, but there was  no shortage of opinion … or deep concern. And, there was  no curtailment of expression of opinion. As yet, there was  no constraint of gathering, no report of nearby illness or  threat of spread within the school, but there was such a  varied student body from widely spread parts of the world,  that a disparate and dramatic playing of contrapuntal  themes filled the campus each day.  
Relatives were in hospital in Britain and France, the  virus was not acknowledged in Brazil, New Zealand  showed the world how to deal with this, Italy was suffering  and crying for help, Singapore was exemplary, Hong Kong  was not representative of China, Senegal requested their 
example be followed, Washington State was in trouble –  trouble reflected by the tears of students away from that  home, New York City was indicative of congestion and a  thermometer for others to measure. The virus had struck  
in many places where the students had left heartbeats.  Lexington offered an intersection of concerns,  apprehensions, angst, and consternation. The traffic was  running amok.  
The faculty at Lexington decided that a sound way of  allowing the student body to ventilate, learn, and find  some reassurance, would be a discussion – or perhaps a  debate – or better, an elucidation demonstrating mutual  support. This could be particularly helpful for those with  families in hot zones; it would use information, empathy,  and understanding as a glue to bring the school together  in this most fractured time. Eight students volunteered to  participate. Hyo-joo was one and Acacia was another.  
No, the virus had not significantly invaded home  territory of the Sappiance family, but concern and rumors  had come like scud clouds – and had rained heavily on all  with ears. Indeed, rumors had prevailed as a premonitory  epidemic which needed to be dispelled as badly as did  COVID-19.

​

TEN
​Preparatory Hugs & Jabs

“It’s so nice to have you over to our house, Acacia.” “Well, Mrs Sappiance, if truth be told, this is one of the  most meaningful afternoons I’ve had this year. Being able  to compare preparations for the virus discussion with Hyo joo, having Benji by my side as a coach, you being here …  well, that is more than I could ask for. But then, to have  Barbara as well! She’s amazing. I’m so glad to meet her.  She’s truly a person beyond her years and so wise, so  knowledgeable, so understanding of Benji. You are  blessed to have a daughter like her, Mrs Sappiance.” “Well, I’ll let you all get back to work. I’ll rustle  something up for dinner. Are you looking at the virus from  the standpoint of plants, Acacia?” 
“No, Mrs Sappiance, I have an uncle who is a  veterinarian. He has been schooling me in the Corona  family. It’s fascinating. I truly think it’s an area that hasn’t  been touched by most people. Well, in any case, I do hope  that I can make it as interesting for the students listening  as it has been for me. The vets even had a vaccine." 
“Really! I guess we should listen more closely to our  veterinarian experts.” 
“It’s complicated, but my uncle is like Hyo-joo’s uncle.  He is dedicated and loves his work. He makes it all seem  so much simpler. He loves to share his enthusiasm. That  means it’s hard for him to stop once he starts. It doesn’t  matter whether he’s on the phone or hiding in an email. In  fact, I usually put his emails to one side so that I can 
absorb them better – waiting until after I’ve done my  assigned homework.” 
“Fascinating. Well, I shall be soaking in all your ideas  as they come into the kitchen. In this small house, ideas  don’t escape very far.” 
“I really like your mother,” Acacia uttered automatically  as she turned to face Benji and Barbara. 
“We like her, too,” Benji replied. 
Barbara brought Acacia back into the midst of the  discussion with, “You were talking about the ancient  history of the Corona family.” 
“Oh yes, that was really an aside. they have been  around so long. Thousands of years. Why it was in the  time of the Greeks some two or three thousand years ago  that they divided into the families of alpha, beta, gamma,  and delta – just as we know them today.” 
“Viruses knew Greek.” Benji asserted. 
“Oh Benji, Acacia brings out your sense of humor!”  Barbara noted, and then turned to Acacia. asking, “Are  those four types important?” 
“Actually, yes, in a simple way. Humans are infected  by both alpha and beta, but beta are the especially bad  ones. That’s where we find the SARS and MERS. Still,  alpha has been really bad for pigs and pigs are closely  related to humans.” 
“I knew it!” Kim couldn’t restrain himself. “I’ve met a  few who are very closely related!”  
“Kim, please, dear brother, allow Acacia to explain.”
“It’s OK, Kim, I enjoy your humor. A little humor will  help us in getting things across in our presentations. As to  the pigs, the Greek pigs, if Benji has his way, the alphas  have really been bad; four of the alphas have been  especially severe in causing disease and death in pigs; it’s  the nemesis to pigs like beta has been to humans. The  point here is that the darn viruses just keep changing and  threatening to be worse. We have to look at the whole  family to learn. For example, with one of the alphas, they  found that piglets shed the virus in their stools and that the  virus was aerosolized when these piglets had forceful  diarrhea; the amazing part was that they found those  aerosolized viral particles spread up to ten miles!” 
Kim naturally picked up here, “Talk about the  disadvantage of being downwind! So if a person is  similarly sick with diarrhea, and they go into the common  bathroom …” 
“Yes, Kim, dear, dear, brother. We get the point.”  Then, directing her attention back to Acacia, Hyo-joo  continued, “So, if we study the family, if we know what it  has done and likes to do to pigs, cows, or others, we see  what it may want to do to us.” 
“True. You see, as my uncle points out, this family has  been well known in veterinary circles for a long time. The  Corona family is known for unfortunate family traits.” 
“And,” announced from the side by Kim, “those traits,  those peculiarities, …”
“Enough, Kim!. Please Acacia, go on. Excuse Kim. My  brother, even though not volunteering for the debate, is  determined to conduct the preparation. You’re fortunate in  not having had a twin. Do go on, Acacia. This helps me  with my presentation as well.” 
“Well, simply put, but bluntly, like my uncle would put  it, the Corona family of viruses has great potential for  devastating effect, and has done it. Three million pigs died  one year due to one outbreak. Cows have been  repeatedly, horribly afflicted, and with impressive death  tolls. Once established, the virus keeps its household in a  species and has a reservoir for further transmission. The  gut and the respiratory tract have been favorite sites. Even  after getting better, the animals have been re-infected!  Can you imagine that? Sometimes it seems impossible to  eradicate the virus from an animal. It can keep passing it  on through its stool.” 
“How does it go from one cow to another through the  stool?” Hyo-joo was puzzled “Is it aerosolized like with the  piglets?” 
“My uncle says that just as when a cow urinates and  splashes the urine on a concrete floor, it aerosolizes and  then it’s breathed in and … well then it”s on its way to the  next victim. This happens with other germs like the one  cows give to milk maids. But that one is a spirochete and  much bigger. This is a virus; tiny and should aerosolize all  the easier. So, when the cow passes a stool, especially  when it’s explosive with cramps and gas, some goes into 
the air, it aerosolizes, and then another animal or human  breathes it in …" 
“You see!” said Hyo-joo, “It’s what was said by  Samchon. Samchon is right again! It’s different from other  viruses. You remember his story about the poorly  ventilated bathrooms in the apartment buildings in China?  That’s how they had the big spread in the beginning in  Wuchon! The virus is in the air! And, the same point he  makes! It’s in the lung and the gut. What other virus does  this?” 
“Flu doesn’t.” 
“You’re right, Benji. Flu causes respiratory problems.  When you have vomiting or diarrhea, that’s not flu, it’s  grippe or some other kind of illness!” Hyo-joo avered. 
“And you were saying how this virus wants to change,  Hyo-joo. Just as your uncle tells you that it is happening  now like it did in Hong Kong, and as it did later with  MERS, my uncle said the same thing about it when trying  to deal with the complications with cattle. Every time it  would go through a few animals, you would see a new  aspect, usually something worse. Going through animals,  that is its ‘passage,’ this has been its way of changing. It  has a great desire to get stronger, more virulent.” 
“You had said something before, something about  combining viruses, Acacia.” 
“Oh, that’s how the virus makes big changes. If  another virus is present at the same time, it is like a jump,  it makes a big change. This happens especially with  certain viruses, and especially with cattle. The viruses 
break down and recombine. They have definitely identified  this as happening. That’s like giving steroids to the virus.  That can make a big change. Some other viruses do this  too.” 
“Yes, Acacia, but Samchon says that the Coronas  look for certain tissues, particular organs; he says there is  a common denominator. They like lungs, and the gut; they  
like the gut; now you say we see the same with the cattle  and the pigs. It’s complicated, but you are showing us  ways where it is simple. Samchon says the virus looks for  receptors and these are present not just in the gut and the  lungs, but in the heart, the throat, and the blood vessels.” 
“My sister listens to Samchon instead of going to  church.” 
“Quiet, Kim! You revere what he says just as much as  I do. You just pretend that you don’t in order to shirk  responsibility.” 
“Ooh, winning kick from sister! OK, tell Acacia about  your 4 H club. Sorry, 5 H club. That’s something that even  I can understand, Hyo-joo. I was explaining that to  Barbara and she thought it was a real winner for the  discussion, didn’t you Barbara?” 
“Yes, Kim. That is a winner. Not the kick, the H’s. How  does it go again, Hyo-joo?” 
“It’s my way of explaining viruses to myself.” Hyo-joo  apologized. “They are such simple little organisms and  can’t live on their own. They need another being, a cell to  live in; otherwise they don’t survive. They need to find  some place where they can take over a cell and make it 
work for them. But they don’t have a way of getting to  good real estate, good tissue, on their own. And they need  to take an easy way to get there. That’s how I came up  with the 5H club for the viruses and put it as a headline for  the Coronas.” 
“Go on, Hyo-joo,” Barbara added. Tell us how you  might present it in the debate.” 
“OK. Let’s see. Viruses can’t do much of anything by  themselves. They lie around, hoping to survive long  enough to get a ride. They have to Hitch Hike. They don’t  have their own car or motorcycle. So, someone touches  an area where a person has coughed and has left the  virus. Now a hand picks it up. The virus was Hitch Hiking  and you just picked it up to give it a ride. But it won’t do  any harm on your hand. It needs a Highway to go where it  can get to prime real estate and take over a Home. You  put your hand to your face, your mouth, your nose, or your  eye, and now the virus is on a Highway and can get to the  kind of cell that it can take over, like those in the upper and  lower respiratory tract. It finally finds a cell it likes. It  Hijacks that cell. The cell doesn’t do its own job anymore.  It just does the bidding of the virus. The bidding is  replicate, replicate, replicate. Just do nothing but make  more little viruses. The cell is turned into a virus making  factory. So, the virus Hitch Hikes, finds a Highway,  reaches a Home cell, and then it Hijacks the Home cell.  It’s the 5H club.” 
 “I love it!” Barbara asserted. “It’s simple, and it’s true.  You should make a big poster with the 5 H’s. Maybe you 
could have that with a drawing of the virus, the little crown  with all its jewels. I can help with the jewels.” You could stress what Samchon said about the  mutants.” 
“I think I do that, Kim, when I talk about the virus  changing all the time. It gets stronger or weaker, it wants  different Homes, different tissues, and, well, as it changes  what it does, the result will change too. In the lung you  cough, in the gut, you vomit. Always changing. Always  different. Sometimes diarrhea, sometimes cough,  sometimes hardly sick, sometimes very sick.” 
“But remember what Samchon wrote in his last email.  The one in China is not the same as the one in Korea. The  one in Europe is different. The one in the States is like the  one in Europe. It helps to explain why some people are so  sick and some aren’t.” 
“Yes, Kim we know. No need to show off. It’s not just  the virus, Kim. Some people are weaker, like jeungio  halmeoni.” Then Hyo-joo explained to others, "She is our  mother’s grandmother.” 
Barbara took charge of the situation and suggested,  “It looks like you’re both off to an excellent start. Perhaps  we should leave you to revamping things on your own.  Whatever you decide to do, you have the knowledge. I am  very impressed with how much you’ve learned. You’ve  certainly taught me a good deal in no time at all.” 
“You see, Kim,” Hyo-joo added, “how courteous she  is? You don’t know how lucky you are.”

​

ELEVEN
​Lexington & the Globe

The Lexington campus was now a cacophony of  conversations. Accents tinged stories which crisscrossed  and converged, some reiterating disturbing tales from  home, others reflecting home concern for the students, for  their anticipated travel, for their returning home, or … for  their not being able to return home. The resounding theme  behind much of this was, naturally, the virus.  
Only a few days after South Korea and the United  States experienced their first case of this plague, it made  its presence in Europe. Each country had its own story  and its own way of dealing with the virus. Passengers  returning from the hotbed of Wuhan China flew back to the  the United States; they were screened for fever in Alaska  and then again, when landing in California; they were to  undergo observation for three days before being  considered safe. Americans had been told that the risk  was low by the authorities toward the end of January while  WHO, the World Health Organization, declared the  coronavirus outbreak to be a “public health emergency of  international concern.” Then the US reported its first  recognized case of person to person transmission and the  Trump administration declared the coronavirus outbreak to  be a public health emergency; the administration set  quarantines on Americans recently returning from certain  parts of China and initiated a ban on foreign nationals who  had been in China in the previous 14 days. At that point,  statistics were unreliable, especially from China where it 
was said that they reported only the hospitalized cases.  Nonetheless, the only reported deaths due to the virus at  that time were from China. It was said that there had been  some 12,000 cases and 250 deaths. As February came in,  those were the only deaths that were “certain.” 
Then, with the advent of February in a bissextile year,  promising an extra day for the virus to wreak havoc, the  story started to change. The virus had spread to the  Phillipines and taken a life there. The story of a  “whistleblower” doctor in China who had warned other  doctors of the seriousness of the disease died,  succumbing to the very disease himself. 
In mid February, WHO officially tagged this new virus  with the appellation of COVID-19.  
Toward the end of that month, Italy locked down,  closing schools, businesses, and restaurants. Italian  students in Lexington feared not being able to return home  or, if able to return, not being able to come back – to  resume schooling in the States.  
At the end of February, the Vice President in the  United States was designated to lead a task force to battle  COVID-19. Our testing in the States was admitted as  flawed, and rather than accept testing as done by other  countries, companies in the US were invited to attack and  correct this problem. The FDA facilitated this by altering  the rules for adoption of new testing technologies. 
And then, and now, we were in March. This was a  month of turmoil. COVID-19 was exploding in Italy.  Reports from home superseded official documents. 
Everyone looked for definitive information; everyone  feared reading the next email or opening the next letter  from home. No place seemed secure; no place was safe.  Rumors were rife and knowledge was wanting.  Authoritative information was often conflicting. 
The European Center for Disease Contol, The ECDC,  sent out a statement at the start of March, while holding on  to one of the older names, ie, novel corona virus,  indicating that the upcoming risk for sustained spread of  the virus throughout Europe and the UK was moderate to  high. They reported that of the then recognized nearly  90,000 cases globally, only just over 2000 were in the  official EU/EEA/UK count. But the death count had also  started, and it, too, was rising. 
Italy, Spain, and France had received viral sucker  punches, the suffering was mounting each day, and  Germany was now indicating a similar pattern. Each of  these countries was represented by members of the  student body at Lexington. Even the UK, another  wellspring for Lexington, was sending messages from  home which, while trying to reassure, were filled with  concern and alluded to the possibility of worse. 
Hyo-joo and Kim received regular communications  from parents, other relatives, and friends. Samchon, while  indicating he was busy, was faithful in keeping the twins up  to date. Samchon had a compelling story to relate. It was  about a single person and what only one person could do.  In this case, it was not good. 
The story referred to one woman, a sick woman, a  woman, who attended a religious ceremony in Daegu, a  ceremony where there were some thousand worshippers,  all probably praying to avoid being struck by the virus. So  what seemed to have been an ideal response to the first  case in January, now was ruined, approximately a month  later, purportedly by this one woman. She had been  infected with the virus, she managed to change the  religious gathering of the Church of Jesus into an  overrunning petri dish, spreading devastation in every  direction. All the caution previously taken was crushed.  
As February closed in South Korea, the number of  cases exploded and that country was second only to  China in its tally for being struck. Samchon was equally  struck. On the one hand, he was frightened, disheartened,  disappointed, and reluctant to tell the story to Hyo-joo and  Kim. On the other, he was able to reassure them. The  family was well. The attendees, the worshipers, and their  contacts were being identified and notified; they were to  isolate, to prevent further spread; they were to self  quarantine. There was a battle between the government  and this religious group. The government was prevailing.  Samchon felt this would be effective in snuffing this  unfortunate match. 
So it was, depending upon from whence they came,  so came the news. Little was greatly reassuring; all was  attached with love, none indicated any assurance as to the  future.
This news, coming from home, added punctuation  marks and tears to the cacophony of conversations.  Emotion soaked the words, concern interrupted study  patterns, and students found similar problems in dissimilar  ethnicities; students supported one another as not in the  past. They looked forward to the debate, discussion, and  disentanglement of the virus that was to occur in short of a  fortnight. Everyone looked for clarity and support.  Everyone hoped that the need for this would pass.

​

TWELVE
​Pierre

“Oh, hi Benji. I thought you’d be in school. Did they  close it down due to the viral scare?” 
“No, Acacia. I’m playing hooky!” 
“Benji, how naughty!” 
“Barbara’s playing hooky too! She’s naughty too.  She’s with Kim.” 
“Oh, I see. Yes that does sound naughty. Does your  mother know?” 
Benji held his finger up to his lips. 
“Oh dear! By the smirk on your face, I expect that  you’re enjoying your truancy.” 
“ I came to visit the trees. I hoped I’d see you.” “Well, I have a class in five minutes, but if you can be  here after that, I’d love to see you.” 
“I’ll be here.” 
Acacia reached over and gave Benji a kiss on the  cheek, turned quickly, and while quickly limping off,  shouted, “Later!” 
Benji’s face changed. His eyes opened wide, a scarlet  hue captured his skin, and, while his mouth remained  almost closed, a grin took over the real estate of his lower  countenance. No one to hear, but he uttered again, “I’ll be  here.” Then he started to stroll through the trees. 
Sitting, sitting forward with his head and hands on his  raised knees, sitting alone under a single and most  unusual tree, sat a hidden face with tears seeping  between the fingers. Benji walked over and cautiously 
approached, but there was no response except a quiet  sobbing coming from between the fingers. Benji looked up  at the tree, then at the top of the boy’s head, then back at  the tree. Then he sat down. He sat not quite an arm’s  length from the boy. He reached out and slowly, softly,  gradually placed his palm on the shoulder of the boy. 
The boy’s head turned as he raised it and dropped his  arms to one side, all done slowly, as had Benji, as if  choreographed in andante. His right hand held some  papers, crumpled, but held most firmly. He stared at Benji,  and then looked down at the papers. He spoke from his  throat. “Eet is the baad news.” He spoke slowly and  hesitatingly, his words suffocated with feeling. 
“Ma mère, she send the email. I cannot stay eenside.  I copy the email and bring it ‘ere – to read again … and  again. I need the spaace. I need the air. Il faut …I need  the air like mon père … sorry … my father, ‘ee is een  ‘ospitaal. ‘ee is very ill. ‘ee cannot talk. A machine  breathes for ‘eem. No air is enough for ‘eem. Eet is the  very baad news.” 
Benji didn’t move. He just stared at the boy. He kept  his hand on his shoulder. 
“’ee has the verus. The baad one! They said … they  thought … they thought he had mal de coeur, pain from  the heart … douleur cardiaque! ‘ee had the beeg pressure  on his chest. ‘ee could not breathe. But ‘ee had the cough  too. ‘ee was so weak. ‘ee could not walk. Only the crawl,  ‘ee crawl to the toilette. And the feaaver. ‘ee thought, peut 
etre, eet is the flu. Then up with the eensides. ‘ee vomeet.  And from the other end too. Everything at once. Then the  ‘ospitaal. Worse. ‘ee could not catch the breath any more.  
Eet got desperate. Now ‘ee is …” and the boy looked at  the crumpled papers and found a word. “‘ee is on the  ventilator. They breathe for ‘eem.” 
There was a pause. 
“You understand?” 
Benji slowly shook his head affirmatively. 
“I do not know what to do. Ma mère, she writes. She  writes to shed the tears. And, aussi, she must share the  tears with me. She cannot see ‘eem. No one can see  ‘eem. There is too much of the daanger. All those near  ‘eem wear special suit. He is not awake.They make ‘eem  sleep so they can breathe for ‘eem. The machine must do  the job.” 
Another pause. 
“Comprenez vous?” 
“Benji slowly nodded.” 
The boy looked down and haltingly spoke to the  papers, “Mon père, je t’aime. J’ai peur.” 
The next few minutes passed without a word. The boy  held his hands before him and closed his eyes. He  crossed himself. Then Benji moved – moved and spoke. 
He looked up to the top of the tree – then at the boy.  Benji pointed at the tree. He sat just pointing, then spoke.  “It is sacred … protective … for centuries.” Benji stared at  the top of the tree. “One tree grows a thousand years. It 
chooses and protects. But here … so rare. How did you  find it? How did you know to pray here?” 
“I do not know. I walked with the paaper. Suddenly I  felt the weakness and I ‘ad to seet. I was overcome.” “Ah, the tree found you. She will help you – you and  your father.” 
“The tree found me?” 
“Yes, the tree knows. It has ancient knowledge. It has  power. It is Pehuén. It is sacred.”  
“A saacred tree.” The boy stared at Benji. “You know  thees?” 
“Yes. The tree understands. It will help.” 
“Mon dieu! Merci, mon ami. Merci beaucoup.” Then the boy left.

​

THIRTEEN
​The Favored & Savored Cheek ​

“Benji, I’m so glad you waited for me. Have you been  talking to the trees?” 
“I learned some French.” 
“Oh, which trees speak French?” 
“The boy spoke French. The tree speaks  
Mapudungun … and many other languages. Ancient. It’s  very rare here. It belongs in Patagonia. It is sacred.” The Araucaria? The Parasol tree?” 
“Yes, he prayed under it. His father is in the hospital.  He chose the right tree. Or, the tree chose him.” “You were there, you were there with him?” 
“Yes, he prayed to his God. I prayed to the tree.” “Oh, Benji. You are so full of surprises!” 
“They don’t belong here. The trees.” 
“There’s a Norfolk Pine a few miles from here. It is  even more particular as to where it grows. You know that  the Norfolk pine isn’t a pine …” 
“Yes, Araucaria.” Benji stared back toward the site of  the Parasol tree. “I like your name for the tree, the  Parasol, much better than, well, the other name doesn’t  sound sacred.” 
“Well, the shape, the shape of the really mature ones,  only the mature ones. That’s what some of the folks in  Patagonia called them. When I was there with my father, I  remember seeing these trees and disbelieving that they  existed. They are so beautiful, so different, so stately. They  really looked liked giant parasols. They’re threatened, 
worse, I believe they are endangered, but, even before  that, they were protected, protected because of their being  sacred to the natives. The natives insisted on their being  protected.” 
“They do the protecting.” 
“Yes, Benji, the trees can do the protecting, but …  only, if we give them a chance.” 
“I held the boy’s shoulder. But I wasn’t too close.” “Oh, Benji.” 
“I don’t touch a lot … not people.” 
“I understand.” 
“i was afraid he might touch me, my face.” 
“Your face Benji. What do you mean?” 
“It’s hard to say.” 
“That’s all right, Benji. You don’t have to say anymore  if you don’t want to.” 
“I want to, and I don’t want to. I want to more. I don’t  know how.” 
There was a long pause where they each just kept  looking at each other, smiling, looking away, then looking  back. 
“Let’s go take a walk and talk to the trees.” 
“Good idea, Acacia. We can visit the ancient Ginkgo.” “Talk about going back in time. Okay, Benji, we’ll go  back before the dinosaurs and visit the Ginkgo.” They strolled from tree to tree, putting their ears to a  few, hugging a special one or two, and even conversing  with one on their walk. Benji stopped to thank the Parasol  tree for helping the boy.
Then they came to the Ginkgo.  
“Look at the leaves, Benji. they’re like fans. It’s so  lovely. It looks like a fern.” 
“Maidenhair.” 
“Yes, Benji, Maidenhair.” 
“It’s older than the Araucaria.” 
“Yes, I guess, possibly even before the Mesozoic.  You’re full of interesting insertions.” 
“It’s a boy, it’s OK.” 
“What do you mean?” 
“The girl, when she becomes a woman, when she  makes fruit, the smell is … it’s not good.” 
“Oh, yes, now I know. the rotting female fruit can drive  people away. It’s worse than an unkempt dog kennel. It’s a  horrible stench.” 
“That’s what I said.” 
“Yes, Benji, that’s exactly what you said. People need  to listen to you carefully. You say a lot in a few words.” “Thank you, Acacia.” 
Acacia lifted her hand to place it on Benji’s cheek, but  he pulled away.” 
“I’m so sorry, Benji. I did something wrong.” 
“No. I don’t want to change the cheek, the cheek  where you kissed me.” 
“Oh Benji, I’ll fix that.” 
Then, Acacia planted a series of kisses on each  cheek and added one on each ear. 
“Now I can’t wash my face for a long time.”

​

FOURTEEN
​A Need to Play

“They should be here shortly!” 
“Who mom? Acacia?” 
“No, Benji, I’m sorry. It’s Kim and Hyo-joo. They  should be here any minute..” 
“OK Mom. I’ll call Barbara. I can go study.” 
“Thank you, Benji.” 
“That’s the door. I’ll get it Mom.” 
“Well, I did say shortly.” 
“Hi Kim, where’s Hyo-joo?” 
“Hi Benji. she’s coming. She wanted to do a little more  work on her preparation. There’s not much time before the  debate or discussion or whatever they are now calling it.” “Disentanglement.” 
“Benji. you are too much. One word and you give the  answer. I should take you back to Korea with me.” “Korea is old like some trees, and older.” 
“Korea is beautiful, Benji. You should see the pink  trees!” 
“They are on Nami.” 
“Nothing escapes you, Benji. Your mind is like a  sponge. Ill just toss my coat over here.. Oh no. I forgot. I  should put it on the rack. Is your Mom in?” 
“Yes, in her room, the kitchen. She likes that. It smells  good.” 
“Yes, of course. And Barbara?” 
“She’s changing colors on her face.”
“I understand. I think I understand. Hyo-joo said you  really helped Pierre.” 
“I don’t know Pierre.” 
“He’s the young boy you sat with, the one from  France.” 
“I didn’t help. I just listened. Then I told him about the  tree. He chose the right tree … or … the tree chose him.” “Ah, yes, the monkey puzzle, a most unusual tree.” “Yes, but Acacia has a prettier name. They call it  monkey puzzle because monkeys have trouble; they can’t  find the hidden food in it. Acacia calls it the Parasol tree. I  like that name better. It’s pretty, like she is.” 
“I think if Acacia called it a pine tree, you’d like it  better.” 
“Some people call it Chile Pine. It’s sacred.” 
“You see, Benji, you teach me. I was trying to make a  little joke, and you correct me.” 
“ I like jokes.” 
“Maybe you and I should get together and work on  your sister. She could use a few jokes … a little lightening  up.”  
“Oh, Barbara,, there you are. Benji and I were just  talking.” 
“Yes, I heard you. I need lightening up.” 
Benji caught a nod from Barbara and also caught its  intention. “I’m going upstairs. I need to study.” Barabara waved, “Bye, Benji.”
“Hyo-joo is coming a bit later. She’s still refining her  paper for the discussion. She has her bike with the super  light, but she might make it here before dark.” “Well, going back will be safer.” 
“Should I say hello to your mother?’ 
“Just yell. She’s in the kitchen.” 
“Hello, Mrs. Sappiance. It’s Kim. Thank you for having  us.” 
Muffled through the door he heard, “You and Barbara  have a nice visit. I’ll be with you later.” 
“She love’s her kitchen, Kim.” 
“Women do.” 
“No, Kim. Mom loves her kitchen because it’s her  refuge since our father died. It’s the one place where she  feels she doing things for him even though he’s not here.  Half of our meals are his old favorites. When you’re not  here, his seat is empty.” 
“I’m sorry.” 
“No, need. She will deny anything I’ve said. I’m just a  daughter talking about her kitchen. Now tell me, what do  you hear from home? 
“Well, you already know about Samchon and his story  about the religious woman and all the trouble she spread.  So far, Samchon has no illness trouble himself, or none  that he writes about. It’s always someone else with him. I  admire him. I would like to please him, but that would be  impossible. I would have to forget about any life abroad,  like here and now, and, instead, devote my life to 
schooling, medicine in Korea … or something else,  something hard and demanding.”  
“It can’t be that bad., Kim.” 
“You’re right. He really is fair. I say that because I’m  not sure that I want to devote my life to something so  strongly. Not yet. He’s not just medicine. Now he’s all  medicine – because of this virus. Other times, he relaxes –  a little. He teaches about the arts, paintings, history,  pottery, and on and on. He explains how Japan really  became civilized and highly cultured because of the  influence from Korea. Then Japan tried to invade Korea  and failed. Korea was too strong. That was Monkey Face;  he was a famous Japanese ruler with a famous and ugly  face. Samchon cannot resist teaching and telling stories. It  is his life. He loves his country. He loves the people. He  says that the very word of his profession explains this. He  is a doctor and doctor means teacher. It is a game to him  that he cannot stop playing. Please, I understand. He is  good. He teaches the right things. But, after awhile, there  is too much seriousness; you want another game with  more fun.” 
“You want fun, but you enjoy your Samchon. You do  love him.” 
“Very much.” 
‘You want to be like him.” 
“No one can be like him.” 
“You want to serve his cause.” 
“For sure. But in the next room, not in his footsteps.” “You have to be your own person, Kim.”
“That is why I am here.” 
“In the States.” 
“No, here, now, that’s why I am here with you.” “Oh, Kim, this is getting deep.” 
“Not really. I see bottom. I see you. I know that you  and your culture … well, I know that you are different. You  are young but you are an older young. You are wise and  serious, but you enjoy playing. You want to go back and  be young.” 
“Please, Kim, you give me too much credit and you  read far too much into my desires and intentions. Yes,  because of Benji, because we were homeschooled; I say  homeschooled, it was a time of readjustment with a  pretense at schooling. Because our lives have been  different, because out mother needed us more than the  school did when father died, or because of whatever, I am  older and probably a little too serious for you.” 
“No, you like the playfulness in me. I can see that.” “I think you like it more than I do. You are brimming  with foolishness.” 
“Ah, yes, but in such an appealing way.” 
“Yes, Kim, in a very appealing way. But you are older  too. Perhaps too old to hunger for play? Aren’t you to be  20 this year?” 
“No. but Hyo-joo will be.” 
“Exactly what I mean.” 
“You see?” 
“I see too much. I see that you are too revealing and  too appealing. We need to talk about something else.”
“Well, let’s see, you are as smart as my sister, and  everyone says she is smarter than I am. You are prettier  than any other girl I know, but that doesn’t matter. Being  pretty doesn’t matter to you.” He then looked at her and  smirked before going on. "You accept me and my culture.  No, you don’t accept my culture. You don’t like it when I  criticize your officials or your policies. You especially don’t  like it when I criticize your president. Benji likes that but  you don’t. You are independent. You enjoy a debate; sorry,  a discussion about our cultures, just as you do about our  futures. You brag about my culture, you point out to others  how Korea was the foundation for the arts in Japan, you  see how we, in Korea were ahead of China long ago, and  you recognize that I want to be part of your culture just as  you would like to absorb more of mine. So it seems like we  should get to know each other much better. Now, of these  subjects, which one would you prefer to follow?” 
“Is there a reason that Hyo-joo is coming late?” “You look too far ahead.” 
“You leave a trail that is too easy to follow.”

​

FIFTEEN
​Surrogate Mother

“I don’t know what I’m going to do with you children.” “Ma, we are not children. I make half the meals, I do  most of the food shopping, I help clean the house. and I  Iook after Benji.” 
“Oh, yes, Barbara, I’m sorry. I know. And next year  you’ll be gone. Well not gone, still here, but in college  unless …” 
“Oh, Mom, forget the unlesses. The virus is the virus  and we’ll live with it. Benji spent an afternoon with the  math professor at college yesterday and he blew him  away.” 
“Yes, but Benji has his needs.” 
“Don’t make him out to be a baby, Mom. He dresses  himself. He washes his own clothes. He may not look like  a movie star when he puts it all together, but, hey, it’s not  bad. He makes his own sandwiches.” 
“Oh, tuna fish from a can.” 
“With lettuce, and mayonnaise, and pickle.” 
“You’re right I tend to baby him.” 
“He’s grown Ma. He’s a man. I know. There are a lot  of parts that are playing catch up. but he has more parts  that are way ahead than behind.” 
“I suppose.” 
“Mom, since Dad died, well, I shouldn’t say this, but  I’m going to anyway. Since Dad died, well, in the beginning  you had all you could do to hang on. We understood,  Mom. And then things got better. We went back to school, 
and then you got the job at Lexington. So we’re all OK. But  you forget that a lot of time has passed. Benji has grown  up. He’s a young man. People his age go into the army!  You can’t baby Benji anymore.” 
“Babying Benji? I’m afraid that I left this world the  same day your father did. You, well, especially those first  years, you had to suddenly grow up, didn’t you? I took  away your youth. You weren’t allowed to have an  adolescence. I’m so sorry, Barbara.” 
“Oh, Mom, I love you so much. You’ve come back a  long way. You almost did join dad. Now you’re back with  us. 
“Oh dear, I’m afraid you’re right.” 
“He’s got a girlfriend, Ma. Benji has a girlfriend!” “Acacia? They’re friends. They have a lot in common.” “He’s taken with her, Mom.” 
“Oh, dear, I need to open my eyes again. I am still  living back with your father – even when I think I’ve  recovered. I miss him so much.” 
“We all do, Ma, but time moves on.”  
“And what about you, Barbara. What about you and  Kim. Is that serious?” 
“I really don’t know. I think we each have very serious  feelings. We’re both young. Kim has to find himself. He’s  hunting; he’s trying. When he does, well, whether I can be  with him then, I don’t know. I have very strong feelings for  him, but I’m afraid of those feelings. If I let them loose, I’m  afraid that I’ll lose sight of everything else. I’m trying very  hard to keep myself under control.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry, I’ve asked you to grow up without  giving you a chance to be a foolish girl.” 
“I don’t need to be a foolish girl.” 
“Hmmm, you know, Barbara, if I hadn’t been a foolish  girl, I probably wouldn’t have married your dad.” “Deep waters. Time for me to do my homework.”

​

SIXTEEN
​The Eve

They were on the eve of the debate – or whatever this  was to be. It was Friday night, March 13th, a day that  would be remembered by many of those at Lexington  Prep. One last night of preparation, one last effort to pick  out that which would make an impact, and one further  chance to anticipate what others might say causing an  unexpected reaction from the stage. All this permeated the  preparation of the chosen few. The latter consideration  was the most troubling. If one person’s remarks derailed  the rest and put them on a foreign path, what then? They  had to be ready for a deflection of their original intentions  – and possibly a re-arrangement or even a reversal of  what and how something might be said. But this was  good. This caused them to listen to others, to read the  news, to urge other students to reveal their concerns.  Would there be major diversions of the theme? Would  there be a crushing of all else due to the litany and  prevalence of misleading and false rumors? Could it  become overwrought with emotion considering the plight  of some families in the harder hit countries?  
Now, they were to receive last minute instructions  from the faculty advisors. They sat, somewhat apart, using  arms for distancing, touching hands, or almost being able  to do so, indicated the proper distance. They wanted to set  an example. They needed to set an example. They carried  disinfectant wipes to use, advocating further prevention.  They were told to stress prevention, and everyone of them 
would adhere to that admonition. They had also been  schooled to be thoughtful and compassionate. People  were suffering. This was not a place for participants to  
individually shine but an opportunity to collectively help the  whole of the student body, realizing the spectrum it  contained. Those had been the preliminary instructions.  Now they would receive last minuted instructions. 
The advisors entered, wearing masks, and seated  themselves after widely spacing the chairs. Georges  Bonlinguet, a biology teacher with two Master’s degrees,  and himself from France, rose to speak. 
He had lost his accent, yet, his French revealed itself  in a delightful, throaty way, complementing a baritone  presentation.  
“I shall not take long. First a few updates. Our  freshman, Pierre, whom many of you know, and, indeed  some of you have dearly befriended, had good news from  home. His father is off the ventilator and is improving.” 
There was a meaningful yet subdued applause and  an exchange of eye smiles riding over masks. “I am not aware of any other student with family in  such dire circumstance. Do any of you know differently?” No one responded. 
"Hyo-joo, what about you and your family in South  Korea. This tsunami of cases from that religious gathering.  Did your family escape?” 
“Yes sir. My family is well, thank you. The authorities  say they have contained the problem … again. It took only  one person to start the fire and many to put it out.”
“Good. I am pleased for you and your family. Let’s all  try to be positive tomorrow. Let’s show we care. We want  to stress education, information, and understanding –  understanding of the fear that many have. Let’s be  compassionate. This is not to be a political debate. This is  not a time for demeaning or blaming. Some of our  students come from countries where governmental  authorities deny the truth. We want to help them but not  invite them to get into political trouble. We want our  students to understand how to protect themselves and  their loved ones, but not risk trouble by confrontation. Is  this understood?” 
Heads nodded. 
“You will each have a wireless microphone. I suggest  you wipe it with sanitizer in front of the student body,  illustrating a measure of prevention. The microphones  should facilitate your speaking through a mask. The  weather forecast is favorable. Cool, but favorable. In order  to stress the importance of prevention and distancing, the  presentation will be outside. We will have monitors  checking for distancing.”  
“Oh, and Larry, I have published your information  regarding hand washing, hand hygiene, facial hygiene,  and fomites. That was well done. Certainly, you proceed  with your talk as planned. We are simply reinforcing your  ‘Practical Points for Prevention and Protection.’ We’re  sending this to all students in an email.”  
“That will be sent with our ongoing summary of the  current situation from the faculty and school standpoint.”
He looked over the group. “Questions? Does anyone  have a question or comment? Well, if not, I’ll turn this over  to Ms. Holcombe for an update of the latest news.” 
“Thank you. Can you hear me through the mask,  speaking into the mike? Way back in the last row, can you  hear me clearly?” 
“Yes.” 
“Good. First the States. We previously told you that  the US has over a thousand known cases of COVID-19;  now it’s 1800 and climbing. Today, on Friday the 13th, I  hope you aren’t superstitious, President Trump declared  the COVID problem to be a national emergency. That  gives him further authority to act and disperse money to  help.” 
“For those of you that are not clear on the situation,  President Trump made an announcement only two days  ago that all travel to and from Europe, except for the UK,  will be suspended for thirty days starting tonight. That’s  midnight tonight on Friday the 13th. There are some  exceptions to this, largely applying to US citizens. We  continually revise the latest information. It’s in bold print on  our website. So now those of you who are hoping to go  back to Europe fall into the same category with the  students from China, Iran, and South Korea. We are here  to listen and help. We have someone on call to respond to  your needs 24 hrs a day. We shall work together.” 
 "President Trump continues to go without a mask.  This is not to be taken as a guideline."
She paused, scanned the masked faces, and queried,  “Any questions regarding the situation in the States?” A hand rose. The student stood. “Are we going to  finish the semester? We hear rumors about all the schools  being forced to close.” 
“We don’t know. We are playing this day by day. Each  State will be different. It’s possible that there will be a  mandate. As you know, our neighbor, Massachusetts has  been hit hard. She is likely to set a pattern. I expect that  most of New England and most of the schools will act in  concert. We’ll certainly keep you all posted and try to help  every way we can. Your safety is our prime concern.” 
“Alright. Let’s go abroad. As of two days ago, we  officially have a pandemic and WHO has named Europe  as the active center of the pandemic. The cases in Europe  mow exceed those reported in China. Obviously, all our  European students are concerned, if not frightened, and  appropriately so. Be especially careful with your  colleagues from Spain, Italy, France, and the UK. They are  particularly likely to have loved ones at risk.” 
“And a major point. This is not a disease where young  folks, like you, are, immune or with little risk. The virus is  acting differently in different countries, but it has been  striking people of all ages. Sutton,” she addressed a  young, dark skinned girl with wide eyes, “I believe that you  will take this a step further. This needs to be stressed.  Naturally, people with medical problems and the older  population are especially vulnerable, and you youngsters 
can not only catch this virus, but even if you don’t get very  sick, you can spread it to someone else where it can be  devastating. Keep that in mind whether you’re here or  going back home.” 
“The virus is spreading everywhere.” It’s in Africa,  Malaysia, Iran (and quite bad there), Brazil, Ukraine,  Puerto Rico, and scattered over Eastern Asia. We are  trying to keep an up to date log regarding each country for  all our concerned students. This means regulations, travel  restrictions, or anything that might be pertinent.” 
“OK. Let’s try to keep it positive, mutually supportive,  factual, and non-political. Did I give you guidelines? Did I  say non-political? Did I say supportive?”

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SEVENTEEN
​Disentanglement

Barbara and Benji came to the debate. There was  only a murmur of a breeze running through the  magnificent grounds. The trees stood proudly, hosting this  momentous presentation. Handouts included some basic  material on viruses, a bit more about Corona viruses, an  indication of symptoms that were of concern, and a great  deal on prevention – especially on hand hygiene and facial  hygiene, but those handouts also drew further parallels  with past instructions about travelers’ diarrhea and the  advisability of keeping other sensible measures in mind. It  was a compact, pocket companion. a viral catechism, and  with no shortage of contacts for help.  
The audience was all masks and all ears. Benji  readjusted his seat so that he might comply with  regulations while getting a better view of Acacia. Barbara  was a safe six feet from Kim. Kim was filling that six foot  gap with chatter that kept Barbara shaking her head – in  seeming disbelief.  
A boy about the size of Benji held up his hand and  waved to him. It was Pierre. Benji replied by holding his  hand over his heart. 
Mr. Bonlinguet stood. The audience murmur ceased,  and only that from the faint zephyr in the trees remained.  He introduced each of the presenting students. Then he  gave a short explanation of the uncertainty of the times,  including even the immediate future for the school. He  explained that there were a few alternatives in the offing 
including continuing where they were with a shortened and  somewhat intensive course load in order to insure  completion, changing to media teaching, as some schools  had done (facilitating continuing the semester irrespective  of physical locale), and searching for local housing if the  dormitories had to be closed down. He suggested that  everyone keep in touch. All the latest updates would be on  the school website. 
Hyo-joo was the lead off speaker. 
“I am here from South Korea, where we have just had  a horrible explosion of this virus, all due to the unfortunate  action of only one person. Whatever each and every one  of us does counts. So I ask you to be knowledgable and  be responsible. And yes, also be caring. But be smart in  your caring. Hugging an old grandparent may not be good,  especially if you have somehow picked up the virus. You  don’t have to be sick to have the virus. You can have the  virus for weeks and never feel sick. So be smart Smart  caring is throwing a kiss from twenty feet away.” 
“Now I shall tell you a secret. It is the secret club of  the Coronavirus family. It is called the 5H Club.” Then Hyo joo went through her explanation the 5 H’s and the basics  of the virus finding a home and starting to replicate. She  added how much this virus loved to change and that each  time it went through a passage it tended to change. That  allowed her to explain, as Kim had suggested, that we  have many mutants. She ended with, “You see, we now  have at least 10 different strains of the virus that have 
been recognized; the Chinese one is different from the  European one, and we go on and on. Each strain, each  mutant, has its own personality and acts differently. When  you put that together with each person that it attacks being  different, you understand why we have so many different  presentations of the virus, and why it is so challenging to  understand.”  
Next, a young man from Puerto Rico spoke. He  clarified that he, like Hyo-joo, was a senior, and hoped to  graduate. He knew the virus, rather than the school  officials, might determine how and whether this happens.  He pleaded for patience and mutual support.  
Then he went into his talk which was a basic  explanation of what a virus is. He pointed out how viruses  have only recently been identified and we have both  ignorance and knowledge as a result. To explain this, he  gave a comparison of the early days of identifying and  understanding bacteria. “You see, even the authorities  were wrong. Some of the best educated said that the  plague that was killing off large segments of London was  from bad air, from “miasma.” One man defied them. He is  now considered to be the father and founder of public  health, but then … then, he was considered to be a  maverick, he was denounced as a fool, and his ideas were  discounted as trash. This is where I learned the word  calumniation;” he struggled, separating the syllables and  then repeated the word more smoothly, “it really fits for 
what they did to this man. He was right; he was alone, but  he was right. Where are the voices like his now?“ He ended by pointing out that antibiotics work on  bacteria but viruses are different. We don’t have good  treatments for viruses. While we keep hunting for those  good treatments, prevention is the key.” 
A tall, gangly boy, not quite used to his rapidly  extenuating form, took a few spider-like steps to be in  better view of the audience. He turned toward the faculty  representatives, bowed, and thanked them for the  privilege of being in this school. He turned back and  thanked the audience for the opportunity to speak to them.  
“I am from a very poor country, and only because of  much help that comes from here, I can learn with you. My  country suffers. She suffers from the virus but I think she  suffers more from bad information. People in my country  lie. It is not my mother or my sister who lies. It is the big  people who lie. If you repeat what they say, you lie. You  learn not to listen.” 
There was a pause. He adjusted his awkward frame.  “Even here, we hold in our hands … these.” He held up his  smart phone for all to see. Standing there, microphone in  one hand and smart phone in the other, he faced the  smart phone and talked to it. “A gift to me. Wonderful.”  Then he turned and talked to the audience. “But careful!  This is filled with false, bad, and wrong information meant  to lead you into dark woods. Our social connections are  not where to get health news or medical news. Be careful. 

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