AS the winter dark clouds gather, threatening to confirm
sceptics’ predictions that Zimbabwe might be overwhelmed by a spike in Covid-19
infections because of the cold weather, a silver lining emerged in Bulawayo
following the recovery of four out of five family members who had tested
positive to the virus.
The family of five, which has the youngest case of the
coronavirus in the country — a three-year-old — (identified by the Ministry of
Health and Child Care as case #19) is counting their blessings as they were
given an all clear by the Rapid Response Team (RRT) but unfortunately the
mother, the first to test positive in the family is still Covid-19 positive.
However, the mother who was first taken away to an
isolation centre in the city, has returned home to continue self-isolating.
Sunday News visited the family yesterday and there was visible joy among the
family members. Case #21, a daughter to case #16 was happy to express her joy.
“We were told we were negative on Sunday last week, that
was after 41 days in quarantine at our home and with mum she is still going on
and it’s her 48th day. The delay in our results came about as the laboratories
(at Mpilo Hospital) had no reagents to carry out the tests, we had to just
endure,” said case #21.
She said there was a lot of anxiety during the wait for the
results as they were overdue.
“The anxiety of waiting was terrible, every car that was
moving outside, we would run to check if it was the RRT guys that had come with
our results, but all were just cars going to their destinations. The wait was
painful,” she said her eyes welling up with tears.
She went on.
“When the results came, we were not as excited as we were
supposed to be because not all of us tested negative, my mum was still
positive. She had to be moved to the quarantine centre for some days, that was
a hard blow on our side because we didn’t know what was going to happen next,
if she was going to come back or not. Instead of celebrating, we were now in
deep sorrow, we began to pray even more, we questioned ourselves on what it was
that we had not done correctly to have her coming out still positive,” she
added.
She said her three-year-old daughter was hardest hit during
the testing times because she experienced excruciating pain during testing and
was later experiencing nightmares.
“She would cry at night assuming they are coming to test
her again and the day the results came she saw the team and ran away screaming
as she was scared of enduring more pain,” she said.
Asked how she was feeling following the release of their
results, case #21 said she was “still in the same situation”.
“As for me it’s like I am in still in the same situation,
being negative but knowing that my mother is still positive. I understand the
pain she is going through, I’m enduring the pain with her. It’s not an easy
road, we have fear of what will happen to her, how long it will take for her to
be cleared,” she said.
Case #21 said she understood though, their discorded
results, that it was to do with the strength of one’s immune system and that
with age it is more compromised than in the younger generation. Since results
were revealed, she said nothing has changed as their routines were still the
same. In an earlier interview, the family members said there were not taking
any special medication.
“We still do what we had been doing, and mum had to be
released from the quarantine centre because of certain circumstances and we are
also at risk of reinfection too but we follow advice from health personnel so
we still run away from getting it again. On our part, we still steam with
various concoctions although to a lesser extent than when we first tested
positive,” she said.
Case #21 said they were freed physically to reintegrate in
with the community but still chained mentally.
“We are still locked in, we were freed to go out but we are
all afraid to go out, we are afraid of the unknown maybe. We are scared of
answering all sorts of questions that people may have when they see us roaming
in the streets. My daughter even refused to go and buy bread at the shops, she
has never gone against my commands but I understood her this time. I was equally
scared to go out, I’m tired of having to explain myself and the pain we have
endured as a family. With time we will go out I’m sure, but am I ready to go
out and face the world? I don’t think so,” she said.
With the excitement of being “released”, she said, she went
out to clean outside their house which also drew weird looks from neighbours.
“After being told we are clear, the next day I went to
clean outside the yard. One of our neighbours really had to make sure it was me
as she stared at me while I was cleaning, she must have been shocked to see me
outside. That action made me more scared actually to go out more,” she said.
Case #21 said she was happy to be “clean” with her children
as they await her mother’s recovery. Asked on the support she had received from
well wishes, she said she was in awe.
“I would like to thank my community for their support as
they were the first to hear our cry, we have been fed by people we know and
some we do not. I discovered that we are all human beings, we had so many
churches that came through for us.
“Companies have also reached out. Believe me, there is a
lady from Gweru who called us every day for the 41 days just to pray with us
over the phone. We would wait eagerly for her phone call each day and it kept us
going spiritually,” she said.
She said various other people from all over the country and
outside the country assisted the family during their difficult time.
“Saying thank you would not be enough to express what I am
feeling. I am happy to say yes there were negative social media reports but
when we were reported correctly in the mainstream Press, we got an overwhelming
amount of assistance from far and wide and as a family we are thankful for
that,” she said.
“It was not all about the food parcels but a sweet phone
call to hear how we were doing brought smiles to our faces. People would make
an effort to hear about our well-being and sourced supplies for us, it helped
in the healing,” added case #21.
Birthdays are always happy events but this year the family
had to celebrate two birthdays while in isolation and it was not fun and games
for them. Case #21, however, said Covid-19 showed her the warmth of Zimbabweans
near and far who contacted them, giving assistance emotionally and materially
as the family made new friends. She also had advice for citizens and those
escaping form quarantine centres.
“I am seeing an increase in Covid-19 cases in the media,
people must follow advice we are being given, work it out with a positive mind
that you can fight this disease. I don’t know why people are running away from
quarantine centres, they must be sympathetic to the next person as they can
infect them too. How then can we contain the virus when we have runaways who
may be positive? Those that are loitering just stay indoors and adhere to the
set rules. Have a valid reason to go out and we will eventually fight this
virus as a nation,” she said.
Case #21 and her three children who all had tested positive
are testimony to the fact that every cloud does have a silver lining.
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