I wonder if Gabriel García Márquez's estate receives any royalties from the seemingly unending use of “_____ In The Time Of ____” in coronavirus announcements and updates. I know it is a bit early for the April edition of E-News but with the extension of the stay at home directive thru April, Jan Thompson and Carl Cross, ASURA President and incoming President, thought it would be a good idea to let you know that ASURA is still here. This edition is a bit longer than normal but then I guess we have the time to read and reflect. Topics covered are:

• ASURA
• Jan Thompson
• Carl Cross
• Staying In Contact
• Play Time

ASURA In The Time Of Coronavirus

As you know the Annual Meeting has been postponed until next September and the ASURA Office has been closed until further notice but that does not mean ASURA has entirely shut down.. 

• Joy Shearman is working remotely with her committee to select next year’s scholarship recipient.
• The Video History Project is very busy
  
  • Dave Scheatzle is working with the Video History group to develop a submission for the AROHE Innovation Award to be awarded at the annual convention next fall, held here in Phoenix.
  • Dave, Linda Van Scoy, Roger Carter, John McIntosh, and I continue editing past interviews.
  • Pat Schneider and Evelyn Cesarotti are working on adding Abstracts and Table of Contents to interviews in the Digital Repository. If you would like to join Pat and Evelyn in learning something new about ASU and enhancing the Video History’s interview collection let me know.
• Becky Reiss continues to process obituaries

Jan Thompson In The Time Of Coronavirus

Jan sends her greetings to everyone. She has been enjoying lots of dog walks in the beautiful weather and spending MANY hours/day playing both the piano and the cello. She has a new cello teacher (Skype lessons) and expects to at least triple her amateur cello skills over the next few months. Watch for her to be duetting with Yo Yo Ma this fall! She wants to encourage anyone who has a musical instrument at home to activate it, whatever your skill level. Music can be a wonderful source of pleasure and comfort anytime, but especially now. 

Carl Cross In The Time Of Coronavirus

Carl has been spending much of his time helping residents in his manufactured home community to relax and not allow this pandemic to control their lives. He sent  the article below that he has been using to help accomplish this and thought it might be helpful for some of our ASURA members. As has Jan, Carl has been playing his organ and piano. Also, as a member of the East Valley Chorale, he is working on 20 songs that they were practicing before having to cancel their weekly rehearsals. As one of his neighbors remarked, “I’ve never seen so many clean windows.” 

ONE IMPORTANT RECOMMENDATION YOU MAY NOT BE HEARING

by Dr. Eugene K. Choi,

Surgical Oncologist, at the Baylor College of Medicine

Comprehensive Cancer Center

Wherever you are in the world, you’re hearing about how Coronavirus (COVID-19) is rapidly spreading, I mean countries have shut down over this. First, let me say, yes, it’s important to take precautions. I’m not writing this to argue about that. But I do want to share something that’s been on my mind about what the biggest problem going on with all this is.

There’s something much worse that’s spreading a lot faster. It is FEAR. And here’s the truth. The FEAR of Coronavirus is deadlier than the virus itself. You see, when you are in fear, a reactive part of your brain called the amygdala takes control of your actions. You enter into a fight-flight-freeze response. (It’s what’s causing people to buy way too much toilet paper.) And when you are in this reactive state, your body starts producing a steroid called cortisol to help you handle the stress. And guess what cortisol does to your immune system? It WEAKENS it! We have bacteria, viruses, fungus and a whole array of foreign particles we are exposed to every day, but it’s your immune system that prevents you from getting sick.

When we’re stuck in fight-flight-freeze because of worries or anxiety, our bodies are eating a ton of energy because it actually thinks it might die at that current moment. And all that energy that’s gone now makes our bodies weaker and more vulnerable. Being afraid is literally making you even more susceptible to getting sick. And guess what else happens when you stay in fight-flight-freeze mode? You’re in a SELFISH, self-protective state. You literally lose the capability of thinking or having empathy.

How to Powerfully Boost Your Immune System

While taking proper precautions during these times, do the things that keep your immune system strong. Reducing stress helps your brain feel safe and puts your body out of fight-flight-freeze state and into a “rest and digest” state so your body is in recovery and ultimately maximizes your health.

So how can you do this?

• Practice the act of shifting your focus to things you are grateful for.
• Take some time to think about the things you have that others don’t.
• Or if that’s hard to be grateful for, try thinking about all the people in the front lines working to contain this pandemic.
• Take notice of things that allow you to feel grateful. Doing this immediately gets you out of the fight-flight-freeze state.
• Practice empathy. Spend time connecting with your loved ones that you are not with. Laugh with them. Tell them you appreciate them. 
• Spreading joy to others boosts their immune systems as well.
• Spend these next few weeks as if it will be a long while before you have this rare time to connect with your loved ones at home or just have your alone time to recharge.
• Send your love to those who are getting ill because this is bigger than just ourselves.

Staying in Contact In The Time Of Coronavirus

One of the pluses of membership in ASURA is that the Association helps you keep in contact with fellow ASU colleagues – old and new. Just because you are stuck at home does not mean you have to lose face time with colleagues or family. There are several electronic ways to have real-time chats - you’ll need a computer/laptop/phone with a camera, microphone, and speaker.

• Skype has been around for years. You will need to add the Skype app to your device, and you are then pretty much ready to go.
• Zoom is a newer application and is what ASURA has been using for its pre-retirement seminars and one sold out regular spring seminar. It is free if your meeting is 40 minutes or less. If you want to have longer meetings you can sign into MYASU and use the commercial grade version of Zoom with unlimited meeting times. As with Skype you will need to load an app on your device

Note – There are reports of third-party hackers attacking Zoom meetings. ASURA has not experienced any such thing but should it happen you have “Settings” in Zoom that can make your meetings more secure.

• Gotomeetings is another possibility. There is a free trial period but then it is $12/month.

Play Time In The Time Of Coronavirus

So maybe you can reduce your stress by playing games with some of your colleagues / grandchildren - how about a Monday afternoon game of Scrabble, or Monopoly, or Go Fish. There are several online versions of a variety of board and card games. Most of them will require some set-up to get opponents invited / recognized.

• 8 Best Multiplayer Online Scrabble Games For Word Fanatics
• 10 Addictive Facebook Games to Play with Friends
• Monopoly

Calendar of Upcoming Events In The Time Of Coronavirus

Nothing

Final Note In The Time Of Coronavirus

If you would like to read a nice love story consider reading Love In The Time of Cholera by Gabriel García Márquez.