Covid-19 Catastroph
By Morgan Simpson
You thought the year 2020 was going to be the best year, the start of an awesome new decade. But it ends up being the start of something worse than anyone could have ever imagined: the Covid-19 Pandemic. It started in Wuhan, China, late 2019, but by 2020 started to spread to hundreds of countries worldwide. At first it was called the Coronavirus, but after, it developed the name Covid-19 that is short for its full name Coronavirus Disease 2019.
The most common effects of Covid-19 are as follows: headaches, cough, fever, tiredness, difficulty breathing, sore throat, body aches, loss of taste or smell, and some people have no effects at all. Fewer people have nausea or vomiting. Less of the population get more serious long-term Covid effects such as: blood clots, heart or organ damage, persistent pain, memory problems, concentration difficulties, or a reduced appetite. At the beginning of March 2020, there were already over 200 000 people infected by Covid-19, over 1 000 people that had already died, and schools were already shutting down and turning to online schooling. That was before special vaccines were created and masks were worn by the general public.
Over the course of the whole pandemic, people were trying to prevent themselves from getting Covid-19. Some would get their vaccinations, while others avoided group events or wore higher quality masks. But everyone was advised to wash their hands often, social distance from others not in their household, sanitize surfaces frequently, etc. Dr. Anthony Fauci once said, “Don’t get the attitude, ‘Well, I’m young, I’m invulnerable.’ You don’t want to put your loved ones at risk…” People who say this are the people who simply do not care that they made it harder for everyone else to stay safe. Even though it is more common to get Covid-19 over the age of 65, anyone, at any age, can get Covid-19 and be killed by it.
Covid-19 has caused the most deaths worldwide since the 1918 flu pandemic. The U.S.A. had “More than 1.2 million associated deaths, with more than half occurring after vaccine roll outs,” said Chelsea Weidman and Barbra Wexler. Vaccines came out at the end of 2020. Also, according to Weidman and Wexler, “In general one in four U.S. infections are reported.” The United States had the most infections in the world, being 103 million, not including the ones not reported. But over the last four years, throughout the entire world, over 100 000 000 cases of Covid-19 have been reported, many resulting in death.
After this four-year catastrophe, you stop and think about what the world has gone through, just for a minute, sitting on your front porch with your coffee. You think about all of the people you’ve lost, the people you are no longer close to, and all of the business deals you could have made. Then you think about the good that has come from the past few years and what it has taught us: to wash our hands properly, to stay home when we’re sick, to cough and sneeze into our sleeves, and most importantly, to slow down and appreciate our family and all of the little things in life. No one notices the good that came from Covid because everyone’s too focused on the bad in this world, but for once, you see the positive side of Covid.
Works Cited
- “COVID-19.” Britannica School, Encyclopædia Britannica, 9 Aug. 2022. eb.com/levels/middle/article/COVID-19/634816. Accessed 28 Apr. 2023.
- “Coronavirus.” Britannica School, Encyclopædia Britannica, 10 Aug. 2022. eb.com/levels/middle/article/coronavirus/632205. Accessed 28 Apr. 2023.
- “Coronavirus Disease 2019.” Teen Health and Wellness, Rosen Publishing Group, Inc., May 2023, teenhealthandwellness.com/article/593/coronavirus-disease-2019. Accessed 26 May 2023.
- Weidman Burke, Chelsea, and Barbara Wexler. “COVID-19.” Gale Health and Wellness Online Collection, Gale, 2023. Gale Health and Wellness, link.gale.com/apps/doc/JPJHGV936755218/HWRC?u=ko_k12pr_d65&sid=bookmark-HWRC&xid=49a30233. Accessed 28 Apr. 2023.
My Family
By Morgan
I have a family of five. Me, my sister Addison, my other sister/twin Taylor, and my parents. Addison is two years older than Taylor and I. Out of Taylor and I, I am older, by one minute. Our dad is a carpenter, and our mom is a teacher, she is a special education teacher.
We live in Canada, Ontario. We have lived in one house my whole life. My mom and dad lived in a different house together before we were born, that was only for a few years, and then they build a house together, the one we live in now.
We have had different types of pets before our first ever pets were bunnies. Then after their passing we got two more bunnies, and then two more, and so on. Our last rabbits name was Nibbles. she lived to be seven or eight. Until we got a cat, we named her caramel. I don’t know if you count pets as family, but in my house we do.
My Favourite Sports
By Morgan
I LOVE sports! Over the years, I’ve played a bunch of sports, most of them for 4-6 years. Here are some I did when I was younger, but I don’t do anymore: dance, swimming, soccer, and gymnastics. Now for the ones I still play: equestrian vaulting, curling, and softball. I love most sports, even the ones I can’t play. For example, I like watching hockey, but I can’t play hockey. I love watching my older sister play volleyball, and that’s one of the sports I can play, even if I am not very good at it. I know all the rules and enjoy playing in my spare time.
I don’t have a favourite sport. To be honest, I can’t decide if I like curling or softball better. I love them both equally. They are both team sports, so I get to spend time with my friends while I play. I’m really happy that I curl in the winter and play softball in the spring and summer so that I have something I love to do all year round!
I know for a fact that I am never going to be the best at the sports I play. But I do know that I am good at them, and I can always get better by going to practice and getting pointers from friends and coaches.
These are some of the sports I love!
If I Had to Choose to Live in a Library,a Museum, or a Zoo I Would Choose a Library
By Morgan Simpson
I would choose the library because it would be peace and quiet for me to read, to wright, or do homework. I could meet people with a lot of the same interests as me, I could read all day, and there would always be more books to choose from, I could start I a book club, or just read by myself.
But if I picked the museum or the zoo it would be loud, there would be lots and lots of people, no ware quite to do my work, and I would need to help take care of the animals or clean the statues.
But when it all comes down to it, none of these places would really feel like home if I moved from what is now my home. If I moved to one of these places when I was a baby, it would feel like home because it would be my home from the start.
Anyway, if I had to live in one of these places this is why I would choose the library.
Band
By Morgan Simpson
I am in junior band at North Dundas. I play the trombone. I was originally sceptical about joining band, but then I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to go out of my comfort zone and try something new.
One of my great friends, Chloe, joined junior band as well, and she also plays the trombone. We have had so many laughs together during band. The band teacher, Mr. Exner, said “There are going to be times when you will want to quit. Band isn’t easy, but once you get past that, you will be happy that you didn’t give up.” I’m glad he said that, because he was right. At first there was a big road block for Chloe and I because we thought our notes were like the positions – position one was A, position two was B, and so on. But a little bit later, we sadly found out that’s not how it works, that the positions did not go like that. So we had to learn the notes all over again, so it took a little bit longer than we thought. But I am so glad that we relearned our notes, for if we didn’t, we wouldn’t be in band now.
After a few months of practising, Mr. Exner announced that the Winchester Christmas parade was quickly approaching, and he would be asking certain junior band members to play on the float because there were not enough people in senior band. He invited my sister Taylor and I and a few other junior band members to play on the float. We happily said we would love to, and it was a great experience. Not many people know this, but after we played on the float, Taylor and I were invited to stay and continue playing with senior band, along with some other junior members. We politely declined, as it would be too much to ask our grandma to pick us up at school four out of five days a week. Mr. Exner said that he understood and that there is always next year.
Since then, we have had a Christmas concert to show all of the parents what we’ve been working on and how far we’ve come. That was super fun! Lately, we have been working on some new songs to do for competitions!
It has only been about half of the school year so far, and we have already made a bunch of great memories. So, as this band journey continues, we can’t wait for many more laughs and to see what new things we’re going to learn next.
Where I’m From
By Morgan Simpson
I’m from long car rides
from the beach,
or the Pool,
from the few meows
when we return.
From sitting quiet, still
and warm thirty minutes
from home from afternoon
tonight.
From Sunday night dinners
by dad, from that apple pie
brought by grandma.
From hitting rocks in the
house on Mondays, from
cheering on the teammate
running home in the summer.
I am from doing tricks on Beau
and Willow on Wednesdays,
and trying to get the perfect
note on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
From all the hours sitting relaxing
with ‘The Giver,’ ‘Heartland Rein Free’
and all the covers before them.
From going out to dinner and or
shopping with my mom,
from using the twenty-two
and four-ten with my
grandpa and uncles.
From my look alike Taylor,
and one of the many people
I Look up to, Addison.
I am from thinking back to
all the sad, happy, and funny
moments with my family.
Just taking it day by day.
My Future Robot Servant
By Morgan
My future robot servant would be short. It would be named Sally. It would be able to do my dishes, my Landry, she would be able to drive but when driving it would be a very safe and would protect me or my family at any moment and it could be able to give me reminders for example the robot would be connected to my phone, and I would create an app to control it. I would make it so when I put a reminder on my phone/the app the robot would be able to remind me. Using the app, I could command the robot to stop or tell it to come to me. The robot would have very many passwords and thumb prints and voice identifications so no one would be able to hack it. The robot would not be able to speak, it would have words on the screen when it wanted to ask me a question or tell me something. BUT when it tells me a reminder it WOULD talk, it would talk in my voice and say things like ‘Reminder you must leave to go to curling at 6:30’. The robot would be black, white, and gray and show no emotions. The robot would also help with my homework. That is what my robot servant would look like, talk like, and help me with.