IN TIMES OF TROUBLE, “YOU’VE GOTTA HAVE HEART AND HOPE” AND PLANS FOR THE FUTURE
by Karen Hechler
Looking over and reliving the last two years has given us things to think about that we never expected in our lifetimes. Other generations have dealt with times of pandemic illnesses. By now, we have all heard about the 1918 influenza pandemic. We were informed about it as we struggled through the early stages of Covid-19 in the spring of 2020. Late February, 2020, we were crowded together at the New Haven Hose Social Hall for a gala celebrating the first 50 years of the memorable Connellsville High School musicals. In early March of 2020, the Connellsville Area Historical Society gathered at the Gibson House to share memorabilia from Connellsville history and enjoy light refreshments together. By later in March, our society was closed down along with schools and churches, and everything became virtual reality as we observed life via television and the internet. We were to avoid contact with others to stop the spread of the virus. We had no inoculations to give people. Children attended school while still at home, learning by using computers. Some children had no access to computers or the internet. Teachers and students had to learn a whole new way of educating and being educated. Going to church had to be creatively handled. Some church services were held over the internet, and some services were held in your cars in the church parking lot just like going to the drive-in movies. The hospitals, in some areas, were overwhelmed with patients stricken with Covid. Medical staffs were over-
whelmed with patients and hospitals ran out pf space to accommodate those patients with the deadly virus. In some cities, like New York City, the public was so appreciative of their brave medical souls that at a certain time every day, the public would go outside or open their windows and cheer for those who put their lives on the line to care for the sick and dying. It was very sad but very inspirational. Unfortunately, as we move into 2022, we see a new strain of Covid filling the hospitals with patients, many of whom are not yet inoculated against this virus. The health workers are weary and not being treated as well as they were earlier. But we hope that things will improve in the future. This pandemic and other issues have divided the American public. People have reacted to the pandemic in very different ways even now that we have very effective vaccinations for the virus. Some people see the vaccines as an answer to their prayers while other are not sure and are afraid of them. This time of difficulty has brought out the very best in us, and, unfortunately, the very worst in us. We suspect each other of cheating and using other’s fears to our own advantage. We have seen things that we never expected to see in our lifetime. Americans are accusing each other of inciting riots, destroying our election process, trying to abolish democracy in America, invading sacred government buildings. The anger and distrust of one another is traumatic. 4
