Will I Survive? By Helen Webb
Will I survive my decision in 2019 to move from my home of fifty-five years to the Happy Home Retirement Community? I had been involved in a variety of activities: playing bridge three afternoons a week, church twice a week, attending a writing group monthly, walking with neighbors daily, and lots of other social activities. The decision had not been extremely difficult to make. The house had developed problems as had the yard. (It was a $1000.00 here, a $1000.00 there.) Arthritis had set up in my back which prohibited me from working in the yard. Although I had yard service, no one could keep the yard the way I had. Eight months earlier I had been hospitalized by a fall in the yard. It was time to move on to a different life. Gradually I began to incorporate some of the Happy Home activities into my life. The various people I ate supper with were friendly and interesting. I spent Thanksgiving and Christmas with my daughter and her family as my son had recently moved to Virginia. Life was moving along smoothly. Then, COVID-19 hit North Carolina and March 17, 2020 the governor shut down the state. The Happy Home Retirement Community became the Happy Jail. The dining room and café were closed. Meals could be ordered and delivered to residents. All activities were cancelled. No outside visitors were allowed on campus. Visiting inside the apartments or cottages was not allowed but we could leave the campus for essential reasons. Then came the mask wearing and six feet apart rules. The “shutdown” 28
