I sit in voluntary isolation on a pleasant Sunday that would be perfect for going to church. I work from home as a freelance copywriter and researcher, so I’m used to staying at home for long stretches of time. Although I’m an introvert I always look forward to my church services and interacting with fellow church members. But now, that’s not possible because the Coronavirus pandemic has hit Jamaica. There’s a national ban on meetings that exceed 20 persons, and my church has a large congregation. Therefore, we are all staying home and live-streaming abbreviated Sunday worship. Since I’m a writer and I now have time on my hands, I’ll share my perspective of being single in a time of Coronavirus.
My Initial Reaction to COVID-19 Reaching Jamaica
We had reports of the first imported case of COVID-19 entering our shores a few weeks ago. The news quickly made the rounds on the social media platforms. I sprang into action, rushing to the supermarket to replenish my food stock. When I got there, it was a mad rush to the shelves. I was completely on edge for that trip to the supermarket and afterward.
My fear of living alone as a single 35-year-old Christian woman in the face of a pandemic kicked into full gear. The enemy was having a field day with my mind. But then the Lord told me to keep reciting 2 Timothy 1:7:
For God has not given us a spirit of fear,
but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
The more I recited this Bible verse, the calmer I got. Then my Daddy Jesus told me to pray Psalm 91 over myself – which I did.1 Now, I am not living in fear, but in faith, and my mental state is much better. I will continue to practice the safety measures outlined by the WHO and the Jamaican government. Additionally, I will continue to comply with the instructions of our government and other authorities. I shared more of my personal insights and words of hope in my YouTube video, so you can check it out. Now, let’s talk about what I’m doing to stay safe amidst this Coronavirus situation.
My Personal Safety Measures to Protect Against Coronavirus
One: Stay at Home as Much as Possible
Yes, stay home! Or as a popular meme says in Jamaican patois: “Tan a yuh yard!” If you are able to work from home, then do so. All essential workers like medical professionals, security forces, utility workers, banking professionals, supermarket workers, restaurant workers, and transport operators have to keep working. I pray for their health, safety and wellbeing each day.
I am fortunate to be self-employed and able to work via the Internet. But, that’s not the case for many other self-employed persons. Jamaica is a developing country and a lot of these persons engage in petty trading, hair dressing, barbering, tourism-related services, and other customer-facing trades and services. So this time of almost everything being closed is a great blow to their finances. I also pray for them and their families.
However, the bottom line is that all non-essential personnel need to stay home. And I’m complying with that order from our Jamaican government.
Two: I Prepare for My Return before Leaving Home
Right now I only leave home to buy groceries. I’m still exploring how to pay my various utility bills online. First, I pray for divine protection before leaving my home – that’s something I always do. Then, I do a recap of all the official health protocols such as social distancing, hand cleanliness, and other measures.
I set a large basin filled with water, laundry soap and disinfectant right by my front door. That serves to catch and immediately disinfect my external layers of clothing once I come into my flat. I also put my disinfecting products close to the door to help me to immediately safeguard the cleanliness of all surfaces in my home and preserve my health. I also have a rubber floor mat by the door that is easy to wash down with disinfectant. Additionally, I move the trash bin close to the door for easy disposal of items.
I then check to make sure that my handbag only has essentials in there. Why? Because once I get home, the exterior, interior, and all the contents of my handbag will be thoroughly disinfected. I also ensure that my travel-size hand sanitizer is topped up. I also review my travel route to make sure that I spend as little time as possible outdoors as I complete my errands.
Three: What I Wear Outside My Home
When this whole Coronavirus pandemic started, I bought a box of gloves and a few simple, paper-based face masks. However, I have since learned that the face masks are only essential for medical professionals and for persons with a cough. Since I also practice social distancing and I’m not sick, I haven’t worn any of the face masks to date.
However, I wear the gloves. Now I know that the official stance is that wearing gloves can serve to transmit the Coronavirus even more. But, here are my reasons for wearing gloves:
- I touch my face a lot without being conscious of the fact. In my case, wearing the gloves makes me feel quite uncomfortable. The level of discomfort is similar to a dog being forced to walk around in booties! Lol! This coupled with the color and feel of the gloves ensures that my hands stay away from my face the entire time I’m outside of my home.
- I use hand sanitizer even when I’m wearing the gloves. Yes, it is overkill, but I do it for myself and for others. Whenever I disembark from the taxi, I sanitize the gloves. Whenever I leave one location, I sanitize the gloves before going to another. I sanitize the gloves before entering my home. I just keep sanitizing the gloves the whole time. It just feels like double protection for me.
- The security guards at Jamaican supermarkets, banks, and other places spray your hands with unknown solutions. They are using rum, rubbing alcohol, a vinegar-and-hydrogen peroxide mixture, and other concoctions in these spray bottles. When I step into a location, I have no idea what I’m going to be sprayed with. So when they spray the gloves, this protects my hands from any corrosive elements in these random concoctions.
I also wear tops with sleeves and knee-length bottoms – for modesty before and now for safety. In this time of Coronavirus, my conservative outfit helps protect my skin from contact with infected surfaces. I also wear enclosed shoes for this reason.
Four: Using Public Transportation in Jamaica
When this pandemic broke out, I was sad that I didn’t have my car. The used car that I had developed severe, costly mechanical issues and was about to die on me. I then sold it as is, with full disclosure of its failures, to persons who know how to repurpose such cars. So now I have to use public transportation, which is another incentive for me not venture outside too much.
Our Jamaican government now requires that route taxis carry one less person than they are scheduled to carry. However, I know that some of these Jamaican route taxi drivers don’t always comply with the law. So, I only take cars that are limited in the maximum number of passengers that they can carry.2 Furthermore, I ensure that I sit at the front. That way if they choose to break the law and put 3 persons on the backseat, I still have some degree of separation. I also make sure that the window is open and I keep my face away from the driver, clinging as close to the door as possible, with my handbag firmly clasped in my lap.
My return trip from the supermarket means that I have a number of grocery bags. Ordinarily, I would seek to consolidate them in a way for me to easily carry them and take the route taxis. Now with Coronavirus, I get a chartered taxi, wherein it’s just the driver and I in the car. It gets me home quickly and right to my gate, but it’s expensive. This serves as another incentive for me to not go out unless absolutely necessary.
Five: What I Do When I Return Home
Returning home is like an intense military operation where I seek to keep all germs (including Coronavirus) outside! Once I get outside the door of my flat, I put down all the grocery bags and sanitize the gloves for the last time. I then open the door.
My grocery bags and handbag go on the floor inside my front door. I remove my outside shoes on the rubber mat. I then carefully remove the gloves and dump them inside-out in the trash bin. While by the front door, I remove all of my outer layers of clothing and put them in the basin by the door to soak and also kill any germs.3 I then head straight to my bathroom to thoroughly wash my hands with carbolic soap. Next, I remove any makeup and thoroughly wash my face. I only shower after I have completed disinfecting everything that I brought into my home.
I thoroughly disinfect the exterior and interior of my handbag. Then all of its contents (including the hand sanitizer bottle) get washed. I wash all my bank and shop cards and their holders. I even wash my few banknotes too – I know I’m extreme! Lol! I also carefully disinfect my medical glasses. Each time I disinfect an item, I also disinfect my hands to ensure that everything is clean. I take a lot of time to thoroughly clean, so this serves as further motivation for me to just stay home and avoid all of these intensely meticulous cleaning routines.
Six: Disinfecting Groceries and Food Safety
Then I turn my cleaning attention to my groceries. I first spray disinfectant on the exterior and handles of each grocery bag before cleaning the contents. Everything with plastic covering first gets wiped down and then washed in a dish soap solution. Items in cardboard boxes are also thoroughly wiped down with disinfectant wipes. Fruits and veggies with a skin are also wiped down and washed. In cases where a food item can’t be washed in dish soap (like callaloo4), I soak it in vinegar and water, and then rinse it off with pure water.
After each grocery run, I wash my reusable grocery bags in soap and disinfectant. I then hang them in the sun to dry. This assures me that I have a clean set of bags to go for my next supermarket run!
Seven: Remaining Safe and Healthy at Home
Although isolation can be difficult, I try to keep my physical, emotional and spiritual health intact. I walk around my small flat, step outside in the backyard for a few minutes for a little sun and exercise a bit. Since I work online, I try not to sit for long periods. I take regular breaks to get my bearings.
Although I’m not a vegetarian/vegan, I have been eating a lot of vegetables and fruits. I’m also putting my blender to good use by making a variety of natural juices to get all my nutrients. I also keep anointed gospel music playing on loop to keep my atmosphere Holy-Ghost lit! Hallelujah! I listen to a lot of sermons and seminars online. Whenever I find something that really resonates with me; I share it on my social media platforms so that other persons can also be blessed.
Whenever I step outside of the domain of my little rented backyard flat (like to dispose of my garbage), I get vigilant with the disinfectant and soap routine. I’m not playing with Coronavirus, but I surely won’t let it steal my joy!
A Combination of Faith and Wisdom is Necessary
Whether you’re single or not, living alone or not, it’s important that we all comply with the preventative health measures that are in place to deal with the Coronavirus. Folks, please don’t freak out and please don’t panic-buy! Please remain close to Christ at this time. Make sure that you are praying, fasting, doing your personal Bible study, and engaging Jesus Christ in regular conversation. Get to work on all the projects that you put off during your busy season. I want you to focus on maximizing this quiet season.
Combating and overcoming COVID-19 means that we must rely on a combination of our Christian faith and wisdom from the scientific and official sources. Faith without works is dead,5 so let’s ensure that our works are correctly informed, as they bolster our faith. Let us also do the following:
If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
Do not give up, don’t despair. Now is the time to be firmly planted in Christ. Now is the time to intercede for your country. We will get on the other side of this Coronavirus pandemic, stay strong! We will also be careful to publicly express our gratitude to Jesus Christ for bringing us through it all.
May Jesus’ blessings, peace, and wisdom be upon us all,
Sophia.
- I also invite you to pray Psalm 91 over yourself and your loved ones.
- In Jamaica we have regular 4-seater and 7-seater cars. I have resolved not to take any 7-seater taxis.
- If you live in a cold climate, you may not be able to launder your coat after every outing. In that case, keep it stored by your door and away from anything else.
- Callaloo is a form of spinach that’s widely eaten in Jamaica.
- Please read James 2:14-26.
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