By Priya Patel

PROMPT—During Covid-19 ...
Who would have thought, huh? I am definitely one of those "it will never happen to me" types. At least I was until a stroke first, then diabetes next. Even then, when COVD-19 reared its ugly ectoplasmic head, I thought, "not me."
I was that crazy ignorant type that refused to wear a mask because I just couldn't breathe; even though 75% of the rest of the world had no problem.
High risk, low on practical common sense, I would strut around, basically a spokeswoman for COVID to attack. It took many deaths, scares, and reality checks for me to realize that this was the real deal; it's not going away. During COVID-19, I have grown. I have grown in a sense that I finally realize that "it could not happen to me" is a lazy way of saying I do not care. The truth is I do care. I have a loving father with very few years left, two beautiful children who are all my hopes and dreams, and I have a partner who places me on a pedestal so high that I don't even know how to climb down. I am not ready to succumb to COVID-19, and I am not ready to leave this beautiful messed up world.
Priya Patel is a writer by heart. She may not be exceptionally good at it, but she always writes from the heart. Writing has also become somewhat of a therapy for her. Patel grew up wanting to be a journalist, even a newscaster. Somehow her fate took her elsewhere, but with every spare breath, she writes. Patel has published three eBooks on Kindle. She wrote this from Big Spring, Texas in September, 2020.