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The Stories

D.S., 67, a retired lawyer in Missoula, MT

“It’s odd, though, as the days roll by with sunshine, the full arrival of Spring, and a seeming “normalcy” except for quieter streets and sidewalks not to occasionally be struck hard with a sense that some dark beast is silently slouching our way–that this seeming normalcy is utterly superficial and spurious, a fool’s paradise, and that all over the country and around the world something truly dark and terrible is occurring.”

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T.S., 65, a retired librarian in Missoula, MT

“…It is difficult coming to terms with the realization that the world I knew has significantly changed. I remember hearing my grandmother talk about about the changes in her life brought about by the influenza epidemic in 1918. I’ll try to learn as much as I can while undergoing this experience so I will have something to relate to my future grandchildren.”

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L.M., 68, a retired special ed. administrator in Normal, IL

“…I was able to continue my exercise class three times a week via ZOOM. I’m a voracious reader and quickly ran out of books. I’ve spent a few hundred dollars buying books and even got my husband reading instead of watching tv. After my projects I kind of spiraled spiritually and felt anxious and depressed…”

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R.Y., 52, a professor in Beverly Hills, CA

“The pandemic drove our family closer physically and emotionally. Online especially through Zoom, I’m connected to larger communities and working on making our voice heard. I’m reading and writing more, and feel the pandemic will shape the near future to be more reactive and reflective for the general global public.”

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L.C., 19, an architecture student in Burbank, CA

“… With these questions I came across, I came through an experiment. An experiment where I would post pieces of advice in a relationship forum. It was fun at first, knowing what’s happening to other people around the world. But as I thought about it more, it’s seeing the people’s inner worlds of secrets where they can’t tell other people…”

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P.L., 18, a student in Fremont, CA

“Although my parents live in China, I don’t have Chinese citizenship and therefore am currently prohibited from returning home for the summer […] I am getting more pessimistic every day about returning to our normal lives…”

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Life in Quarantine: Witnessing Global Pandemic is an initiative sponsored by the Poetic Media Lab and the Center for Spatial and Textual Analysis at Stanford University.

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