I remember watching the news as I got ready for work and hearing about a virus spreading in another country. At the office, I listened as people talked about it and would often interject what I was thinking….we are connected, this will be here soon. Sooner came faster than we were prepared for, we were sent home with laptops, children sent home from school, empty the streets and close the shops, we were all in quarantine.
Fear came with the unknown. People stocked piled toilet paper, food, cleaning supplies and masks. Businesses pivoted where they could and others closed. We watched the numbers on the news ticker increase while as it slid across the screen announcing the latest number of infections and even worse, deaths. We did our best to find comfort in the idea of being safe at home. Distracted ourselves with projects, sourdough bread and finally having time to do that project while we quietly imploded from the solitude that Zoom could not ease. Families lost jobs, students became homeschoolers, parents became teachers, everyone was sinking into depression, anxiety and despair. Covid-19 has arrived.
Day after day optimism waned as stories flooded the news, social media and our own families detailing the true horror of the virus that has been upgraded to a pandemic. As Covid-19 continued to ignore boarders it ravaged countries, states, towns, communities and families. In all of this, there were people on the front lines who faced it boldly and didn’t leave their posts. Janitors, clerks, market workers, delivery drivers and hospital workers left their families to provide a service. They risked their lives for ours with no expectation of reward. Doing what they can to keep their own families safe like sleeping in the driveway or not coming home at all.
Then there were the hospital workers. Day after day I would hear their stories and listen to their hearts. Not only were they struggling with availability of personal protective gear to keep them safe from contracting this vicious virus, they provided medical attention and acts of human kindness to maintain the dignity of the people they were treating. I am reminded of the images of healthcare providers brushing the hair and caring for their patients in a way that family couldn’t because visitors weren’t allowed. They endured long days and longer nights fighting this virus, fighting to save lives. They persevered through seeing death daily, ventilator shortages amidst their own anxiety, depression, loneliness and fatigue.
There are many heroes without capes that have endured loss and suffered during this pandemic. To our hospital workers, we want to hear from you. If you are a hospital worker (doctors, nurses, nurse practitioners, aids, nutritionists, sanitizers, technicians…etc.) who is willing to participate in an interview, we would like to talk to you. Click here to contact us and we will schedule a time that is convenient for you as we take time to hear….what’s under YOUR Brim.
get home, put on those comfy lounge pajama pants, climb on the sofa, eat a sleeve of thin mints and wipe the chocolate residue that has built up on your thumb and first finger on your pant leg. Yup, you have reached your limit. 
mes. Midnight snacking in the kitchen I swore a shadow moved under the radiator. Nahh…I poo-pooed it away. To cast out all doubt the mysterious shadow was boldly sashaying across the front of my fireplace a day later. Yup, it was a &*^#% mouse. Those of you who follow UHB know the water bug incident. If not, go check that out. 
corner with a full plate. To my chagrin, the smorgasbord I imagined through my no-glasses squint, turned out to be the complete opposite. In pretty dishes, elevated in varying heights on a black table cloth are crackers that look like unleavened matzo topped curiously with goat cheese and a brown drizzle (later identified as possibly balsamic something or other), dried apricots (why??), salami, hard cheese with a lovely blue cheese crumble, more crackers a bowl of whole mushrooms floating in I don’t know what (again – WHY), bruschetta toast (nothing on top but at least there is a bottle of olive oil). For sheer survival, as I felt my blood glucose level plummeting, I grab a few pieces of the lunch-meat, cheese, some of the fancy mixed nuts and balance them on a tiny plate. Did I mention how much I despise mushrooms?
salami with bits of hard cheddar in my mouth like skittles with reckless abandon and very little class as the suit closes his speech and thanks us for coming.
While we are still just getting our feet wet into this new year of 2018, I’m sure lots of you have already made some “New Year’s resolutions”, some have decided to do away with the tiresome tradition, and others seem to just be pleasantly proud of who they were in 2017, with no desire for change. 
Under Her Brim 