Positive.  Usually, when I think of that word, I think of a positive attitude, a favorable response, a wholesome sureness of something good.  Not so much this time.

I could hardly wait to get my vaccine for COVID!  I turned 65 on March 5 of this year, and, at the time, only people 65+ were allowed to get the shots.  On March 2, I called and asked if I was close enough to 65 to get immunized, and they said yes!  So shots were March 3 and April 1 for me, being fully immunized on April 15.  What a relief!  No more masks (unless businesses required them, which I felt they had the right to do) and no fears of contracting the dreaded virus.

Fast forward to this past Tuesday evening.  I started getting a scratchy throat and developed a cough by the next morning.  Hmm.  But then, all I got was a nasty, nasty chest and head cold.  I know it’s been at least two and a half years since I’ve had a cold, because I haven’t been sick since Kenn died.  Anyway, it progressed as usual as I remembered my past nasty colds do.  No body aches, no fever, just coughing and blowing the nose.  I decided to get a COVID test on Friday ‘just in case’, fully expecting a negative result.  Two days later…..SURPRISE!!!!!  I got an email saying test showed positive results. 

I jumped into gear.  The first thing I did, was call the three friends I had meals with the previous three days to the scratchy throat.  I wanted them to be aware first.  Two of them were tested the same day and showed negative results.  I’m still working on the third person.

It’s funny, my initial thought wasn’t ‘what will this virus do to my heart?’ Or ‘I hope I don’t end up in a hospital!’  My first thoughts were ‘Please Lord…..don’t let me unknowingly have given this to someone else!’  Yes, I do hope my heart isn’t affected.  And, of course, I don’t want to end up in a hospital.  But I’m going on day 6 this morning since the scratchy throat, and I still just have that nasty cold.  

So here I go again….flying totally solo for the next couple of weeks.  Several people from my church and a sweet neighbor has offered to bring me anything I need.  I have absolutely no idea where I caught it or even how I caught it, but if it stays like it is right now, I can handle this!  I choose to believe that the vaccine is helping me have a milder case than I would have had if I hadn’t taken the shots.

Oh!  Do you believe in miracles???  I do and experienced one a few days ago!  There was a peak to a meteor shower Thursday night going into Friday morning.  I have tried to watch meteor showers in the past, but always miss them.  This time, a friend and I had discussed taking my boat out a little ways to get away from lights and watching to our hearts’ content.  But, as soon as the scratchy throat started, I isolated and, quite honestly, that was when I was my sickest.  I told my friend (on the phone) that I’m beginning to think God doesn’t want me to see a meteor shower!  Well, at 2:30 Friday morning, I was awakened by one of my bedroom smoke detectors chirping, telling me to replace the battery.  Ugh!!!  In my mind, I was thinking where are some ear plugs, I don’t FEEL like climbing up and changing that battery!  After the third or fourth chirp, I rolled on my back and said, ‘God, could You please stop the chirping?!  I’m not feeling so great!’  It never chirped again that morning.  But I did get a sense He was telling me to get up and go out on the deck.  I walked outside and within 5-10 minutes, I saw five shooting stars, one with a long, dramatic tail!  I couldn’t help smiling, and saying, ‘Thank You, God!!!’  

The smoke detector didn’t chirp again for two days, and then God let me change the battery, when I was feeling better.  I am glad I am vaccinated, I am glad I was tested, and I am SO thankful God gave me a sweet miracle!