There is a front page story in the New York Times today, “Empty Clinics Are Called a Misstep in Ebola Effort,” which I read with great interest. On September 16, 2014, President Obama announced an expanded US plan to help Liberia. I remember that day distinctly. I was in Kauai watching the announcement on CNN while speaking with His Excellency the Vice President of Liberia. I was telling him of the announcement. The number of new ebola cases in the country peaked the week after the announcement.
The first ETU (Ebola Treatment Center) built by the US military opened on November 18th, the last opened January 28th of this year; all too late to help with the epidemic. The ominous predictions of more than a million ebola cases did not come true, thank you God. Liberia has had almost 10,000 cases with the largest death toll of any of the three most affected countries, nearly 4500. The US has spent $1.4B on the ebola mission in West Africa. All too much too late?
Tomorrow is the last day I will be monitored by the CDC and the US Government since my return from Liberia. I am required to take my temperature morning and evening and report in daily. I am required to stay in San Diego Country until my 21-day observation period is complete. All too much too late?
When I came back to the US abruptly in August due to the unprecedented epidemic, there was no concern. I passed through Global Entry without having to speak to anyone. Now there is a question on the reentry form asking if I had traveled to an Ebola-affected country – and an entirely different welcome home to America. All too much too late?
I met a friend visiting from Northern California today at a café overlooking Scripps Park and the sea on this beautiful day in La Jolla (I am so aware of the contrast to my Sundays at my home in Liberia and my Sundays here…). She is surprisingly well aware of my 21-day period. When I did a silent meditation retreat last week and was completely away from my phone and computer for almost three days, her concern mounted due to my silence. Fear. It still is everywhere in regards to Ebola and is driving the individual and global reaction.
Us and Them instead of We. Tomorrow April 13th is my personal ebola all-clear day. It was to have been Liberia’s Eradication Day until the one case the end of March; now hopefully eradication will be next month. What is making this eradication happen in Liberia and not in Sierra Leone and Guinea? The Liberian people. People in Liberia took action – they did not want to watch more of their family members, communities members, fellow Liberians die. People in Liberia changed the course of the ebola epidemic. I witnessed that last month. I heard that from Liberians last month. That is why I am telling their stories in the soon-to-be released documentary film.
May we all learn from this unprecedented ebola epidemic and our human family response to it. May it be a wake-up call to a new way of being, hand-ups instead of hand-outs, prevention instead of reaction. Hmmmm… seems that has been my mantra and life work for decades now…
Thank you for believing in and supporting the work of the Foundation for Women. With love and gratitude ~ Deborah
Tomorrow is the last day I will be monitored by the CDC and the US Government since my return from Liberia. I am required to take my temperature morning and evening and report in daily. I am required to stay in San Diego Country until my 21-day observation period is complete. All too much too late?
When I came back to the US abruptly in August due to the unprecedented epidemic, there was no concern. I passed through Global Entry without having to speak to anyone. Now there is a question on the reentry form asking if I had traveled to an Ebola-affected country – and an entirely different welcome home to America. All too much too late?
I met a friend visiting from Northern California today at a café overlooking Scripps Park and the sea on this beautiful day in La Jolla (I am so aware of the contrast to my Sundays at my home in Liberia and my Sundays here…). She is surprisingly well aware of my 21-day period. When I did a silent meditation retreat last week and was completely away from my phone and computer for almost three days, her concern mounted due to my silence. Fear. It still is everywhere in regards to Ebola and is driving the individual and global reaction.
Us and Them instead of We. Tomorrow April 13th is my personal ebola all-clear day. It was to have been Liberia’s Eradication Day until the one case the end of March; now hopefully eradication will be next month. What is making this eradication happen in Liberia and not in Sierra Leone and Guinea? The Liberian people. People in Liberia took action – they did not want to watch more of their family members, communities members, fellow Liberians die. People in Liberia changed the course of the ebola epidemic. I witnessed that last month. I heard that from Liberians last month. That is why I am telling their stories in the soon-to-be released documentary film.
May we all learn from this unprecedented ebola epidemic and our human family response to it. May it be a wake-up call to a new way of being, hand-ups instead of hand-outs, prevention instead of reaction. Hmmmm… seems that has been my mantra and life work for decades now…
Thank you for believing in and supporting the work of the Foundation for Women. With love and gratitude ~ Deborah
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