In the spring of 2020 as pandemic circled round again, I felt the near presence of uncertainty and powerlessness. Remembering the history of the 1918 influenza, how it touched our rural river valley, and the drama of this family story reassured me. There would be suffering, but we would come through it. Writing this piece reminded me how stories can teach and soothe. I’m grateful to the story-keepers who contributed to it—Clara Chinander, Maurine Melin, Marguerite Chinander, Rose Vezina Braatz—and to those who lived it. Thank you Barbara Diehl and everyone at the Baltimore Review for a supportive publishing experience and getting the piece to readers.
https://baltimorereview.org/index.php/summer_2020/contributor/kathleen-melin