My Wife Has Covid Symptoms

Summary

The author is facing a challenging start to the new year with increased work responsibilities, a colleague testing positive for Covid, and his wife exhibiting Covid symptoms, all while dealing with personal commitments and the emotional strain of winter in Eastern Canada.

Abstract

The author begins the new year with a hectic work schedule, having recently been promoted to a managerial position with higher expectations and the need for additional training. Despite the benefits of his promotion, he is burdened with the necessity of being onsite for work, enduring a long commute, and coping with seasonal depression due to the early sunset and cold weather of Eastern Canada. His situation worsens upon learning of a colleague's positive Covid test, which adds to his workload, and his wife showing Covid symptoms, prompting them to seek testing. Amidst these challenges, the author remains grateful for his health and job, leaning on his faith and optimism to persevere.

Opinions

The author acknowledges the stress of increased responsibilities at work following his promotion.
He expresses dissatisfaction with the short daylight hours and cold weather during winter in Eastern Canada, which contributes to feeling depressed.
Despite his own challenges, the author empathizes with those more severely affected by Covid, considering himself fortunate to be healthy and employed.
He feels overwhelmed by the additional work caused by his colleague's Covid diagnosis.
The author is concerned about his wife's health due to her Covid symptoms.
He maintains a positive outlook and gratitude for his circumstances, trusting that his patience and resilience are being tested by a higher power.
The author emphasizes the importance of being strong and optimistic in the face of adversity.

My Wife Has Covid Symptoms

Happy new year. What a good start!

The first two weeks of January are always hectic for me at work. I always set the expectations with my team that we may need to work overtime. Working for only eight hours will not be sufficient to complete our deliverables and fulfill our responsibilities towards the client.

I got promoted to manager last December. Of course, I’m happy. My salary has been increased. More benefits are now included. I also received a bonus of 30%, which is above the average.

But the expectations from the senior management are high. I have to prove myself in the new position. I have to learn and get used to the new tasks. I also have to learn new skills and take more training courses. So I need to work harder!

The kind of work I do requires me to be onsite. I cannot work from home all the time. As a Quality Assurance manager, I have to be in the client’s location to test their tools and devices. The commute time from my home to the client’s site is about 1 hour and 15 minutes. Every day, I wake up at 6 AM, drive for 20-30 minutes to the train station. After I park my car there, I take the train to the client’s office. In the evening, It takes me the same amount of time to get home.

Usually, I feel a little bit depressed in winter. Here in Eastern Canada, the sun goes down at around 4:45 PM. I don’t like that! The day is short and the night is long, and it’s super cold.

To calm down and handle this efficiently is to remember the millions of people who lost their jobs and even their lives because of Covid. At least I’m still healthy, and I have a job.

My father turned 90 years old last week. I always check on him after I get back from work. It’s part of my daily tasks. I buy him the grocery he needs, sit and talk to him, follow up on his doctor appointments, and make sure he’s healthy and happy.

New responsibilities — My colleague was tested positive

Tomorrow, January 4th is my first working day after the holidays. I woke up this morning to go over my emails and do some preparations for tomorrow. I found an email from my colleague saying he’s tested positive for Covid. Now I have to cover for him. This would add additional work to my already “full” plate!

And it looks like it’s my wife’s turn

And as soon as I finished reading the email, my wife came downstairs saying that she has covid symptoms. As I’m writing this piece, we are both getting ready to go to the nearest pharmacy to get tested.

What an excellent way to start the new year!

I feel overwhelmed and worried. But I think the first step to calm down and handle this efficiently is to remember the millions of people who lost their jobs and even their lives because of Covid.

At least I’m still healthy, and I have a job.

I thank God for everything. I’m sure that God is testing my patience. I had many good days in the past.

Now it’s time to be optimistic, no matter how challenging the situation is.

It’s the time to be a man.