Identity Portfolio
By Ye-Rin
Going Back Home
Family Tree
(Matt)
Civet Cat
Author’s Note SARS stands for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, and it is caused by coronaviruses. It began in November 2002, and was first found in Foshan, Guangdong Province, China. It is possible that the civet cats were the origin of SARS. There were 5328 cases of SARS in China, and 349 of them died. It spread to about 30 countries in 5 different continents. In Korea, SARS wasn’t very serious. Only 4 people were infected and nobody died. In some countries like Hong Kong, Taiwan, Canada, and Singapore, there were over 100 cases. When people were infected, they experienced high fever, headaches, sore throat, and slight respiratory problems. They had dry coughs and shortness of breath within one week. They wore masks when they went to the public places because SARS was passed on by coughs and sneezes. Most people avoided public transportation. Finally in July 2003, SARS disappeared. But there is still a possibility that it will appear again. In January 2003, when SARS was still spreading, my brother Matt was born. My family lived in China, so my mom and I went to Korea, where we are from, to give birth to him. My dad stayed in China because he had to work for his company. Mom and I stayed in my grandparents’ house and barely went outside because of SARS. About 5 months after Matt was born, we took an airplane to go back to China. My story is about when my mom, Matt, and I were in Pudong Airport going back home.
Going Back Home Crowds of busy passengers traveled through Pudong Airport. All I could see was people. White masks covered their faces. I wondered why such a large number of people were at an airport when there was SARS spreading all over, to almost 30 countries. I knew that it was a dreadful disease, so I made sure that I had a hand sanitizer. I had heard that, already, over 5000 people in China had contracted the virus. I remembered how extremely anxious I was while I stayed in my parents’ house. I walked rapidly off the plane, wanting to meet Jung Hoon and go home as soon as I could. My baby sling carried 4-month-old Matt while I gripped 4-year-old Ye-Rin’s hand, following me on my side. I held a small bag, stuffed with items for my kids, such as a feeding bottle or baby biscuits. I couldn’t understand a word that the Chinese travelers in the airport spoke. All I heard was a bunch of noises I didn’t care about. A strong smell of sanitizers blended with the dry, warmish air. I wished there wouldn’t be any problems during the arrival process. Just in time when we were lining up for the admission, Matt’s eyes began to water and his mouth went wide open. His wail, as loud as a meow of a furious cat, made one of the guards come over and let us pass without waiting anymore. “Ye-Rin, tell me when you see our suitcase,” I told her when we finally arrived to the conveyor belt.
“Okay mom,” she answered immediately, and her eyes gazed at where all the luggages came out. After waiting for a while, I recognized my luggage coming slowly toward us on the belt. “I see it mom!” Ye-Rin reacted. The luggage fell on the floor after I pulled it off the belt. Kimchi I’ve brought from Korea filled it, because I believed that it would help preventing SARS. The wheels of my luggage rolled quickly as I stepped out the exit with my kids, hoping to see Jung Hoon. My husband stood right behind the fence, waiting, and his eyes focused on the exit we came out from. A smile of relief and pleasure spread on my face as well as his, and I realized how much I had missed him.
Interview 1.When did you go to Korea and how long were you there? was in Korea from December 16, 2002 to May 31, 2003 2.Where were you in Korea? Gyungido Bucheon (near Seoul) 3.Who were you with? grandma, grandpa, aunt, me dad in China 4.How did you feel being in Korea when there was SARS going on? scared of SARS 5.Did SARS effect people in Korea? yes because China is close to Korea measure body temperatures at airports lots of hand sanitizers were sold think more about hygiene 6.Where did you stay? grandma’s house 7.How did you feel about giving birth to Matt at that period? wanted to give birth early 8.Did you go anywhere? stayed at home, barely went outside 9.What did you eat usually? rice, normal Korean meals 10. How did you feel about going back to China? scared waited for SARS to end but still didn’t end when went back to China
worried about dad 11.What did you do before you went to the airport? bought sanitizers and other things to prevent SARS 12.What happened after you went of the plane? walked on a mat with sanitizer on went through the body thermometer holding my hand, carrying Matt, wore face masks scared about going to places with many people 13.What were you carrying? Matt and a small bag with things for a baby and a kid baby biscuits, feeding bottle, so on had sanitizer and propolis all the time luggage filled with kimchi +wanted to come back to China and stay in Korea at the same time, thought SARS would end after winter but didn’t 14.When did you take the plane? in the morning, about 11:00 ate lunch in the plane 15.What were you wearing? comfortable clothes, pants and a shirt 16.How did Matt and I act? Matt cried so could pass immigration faster Matt stayed quiet I listened to mom well, was scared, followed mom 17.How was the weather like? was sunny, nice weather 18.Was there many people? yes, the plane was full
19. How did you exactly feel when you were going back to home in Shanghai? was nervous and worried because didn’t know when would SARS end 20. Were you happy to go back home? was because missed dad in China so wanted to come but also wasn’t because worried about kids getting SARS 1.What did you hear? people talking about SARS, Chinese 2.What did you see? sanitizer carpet, body temperature camera, people with face masks 3.What did you smell? sanitizer 4.What feelings did you have? scared, worried, happy to go back home, wanted to go out of the airport 5.Did you taste anything? no Were there any conversations? there were between you and me me asking you for help, like can you hold this bag for a second
Wikipedia Probable cases of SARS by country, 1 November 2002 – 31 July 2003 SARS Country or Cases Deaths cases Fatality dead due Region to other (%) causes China 5328 349 19 6.6 Hong Kong 1755 299 5 17 Canada 251 44 0 18 Taiwan 346 37 36 11 Singapore 238 33 0 14 Vietnam 63 5 0 8 United 71 4 0 5.6 States Philippines 14 2 0 14 Mongolia 9 0 0 0 Macau 1 0 0 0 Kuwait 1 0 0 0 Ireland 1 0 0 0 Romania 1 0 0 0 Russian 0 0 0 Federation 1 Spain 1 0 0 0 Switzerland1 0 0 0 South 4 0 0 0 Korea Total 8273 775 60 9.6
Research Fact Monster •
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome
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begins with high fever, headache/body aches, sore throat, light respiratory problems
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9% of patients died
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started in November, 2002, Foshan, Guangdong province, China
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spread to about 30 countries in 5 continents
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effected economies of different countries
Minnesota Department of Health •
8098 cases of SARS from November, 2002 to July, 2003
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774 patients died
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caused by SARS-associated coronavirus
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can be spread when cared for/lived with kissed/hugged shared food/beverage talked to (closer than 3 feet) touched a SARS patient
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also can be spread by coughs/sneezes, touching surface with virus, through the air
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begins with fever, over 38˚C
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dry coughs, shortness of breath, pneumonia in 1 week
Deadly Invaders •
Book Title: Deadly invaders : virus outbreaks around the world, from Marburg fever to avian flu
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Author: Denise Grady
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Pages 99-105
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found in 2003
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began in Southern China
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caused by coronaviruses
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8098 cases and 774 deaths worldwide
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SARS could appear again
Bibliography •
Grady, Denise. Deadly invaders : virus outbreaks around the world, from Marburg fever to avian flu. Boston: Kingfisher, 2006. Print.
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SARS. Web. 27 September 2012. <http:// www.factmonster.com/ce6/sci/A0921685.html>.
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What Is SARS?. Web. 27 September 2012. <http:// www.health.state.mn.us/divs/idepc/diseases/sars/basics.html>.
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Severe acute respiratory syndrome. Web. 8 Oct 2012. <http:// en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Severe_acute_respiratory_syndrome>.
Reflection This project helped me understand my mom better. After writing a historical narrative about her, I also learned more about my dad, brother and about myself. I think this project was important because I learned new writing skills. I also got to know my family better and the history related to my family. My favorite part of this project was researching about SARS. I found a book about viruses in the library. I also used the websites about SARS. I enjoyed researching because I liked learning about the historical event. The most challenging part of this project was writing the historical narrative, because it was difficult for me to show, not tell. I think my final draft has more showing than the first draft, because I worked on my sensory details and thought-shots. After overcoming the challenge, I think I now know more about writing narratives.