Or maybe it’s a ghost. It is ridiculously unpredictable and attacks its prey in a variety of ways. British golf announcers like to refer to a challenging golf hole as diabolical (meaning characteristic of the Devil or so evil as to be suggestive of the Devil). This is that!

It’s so powerful it has permanently changed the way people conduct their lives. It strikes fear into the hearts of those who get it and their loved ones. It has killed over a million Americans and 6.5 million people globally. I’m talking Covid. Why? I recently recovered from a 3-week bout with the wicked witch. Talk about a rude awakening…

Before I share my story, I want to acknowledge that I am blessed with good fortune. I can’t even fathom what others have gone through and how awful it must’ve been. So many unsuspecting people ended up in a hospital hallway fighting for their lives while their loved ones couldn’t even visit. Not to mention the nurses, doctors, and other healthcare workers fighting the battle on the front lines. If that’s not heroism, I don’t know what is.

We take care of my 98-year-old father-in-law, so we’ve been hyper-vigilant about Covid, especially during the days of the shutdowns and shelter in place. While his vitals are better than mine, he’s at high risk at his advanced age.

I came home with a nasty sore throat one day in August. My wife, Susan, keeps a stock of home Covid tests on hand. She immediately put on a mask and gloves, stuck a long Q-Tip-looking thing up my nose, and instructed me to wait for 15-minutes for the results. The entire time I say to myself, there is no way I have Covid. Even if I test positive, it will be a mild case similar to the common cold. It will only last 2-3 days, and I’ll be over it. Son of a gun if she didn’t walk in 15-minutes later and announce the test was positive. Even though I felt like crap, I was in a state of utter disbelief. I wanted a “do-over,” which we did the next day, and the result was the same.

I called my doctor’s office, and their response was interesting. First, the doctor’s assistant told me they aren’t doing anything for Covid patients. Instead, she said to rest, drink plenty of liquids, and stay away from people until you feel better. Duh, that was helpful.

For 3-weeks, I was locked down in one room. My throat was so sore, that I could hardly swallow. The worst was the body aches and just feeling drained. I also experienced brain fog, where I was unable to think clearly. It was different than what I had imagined.

I was vaccinated (and not boosted based on the advice of my GP). So, before it hit, I was feeling fabulous and fortunate to have avoided the dreaded virus.

I wasn’t hyper-vigilant during the height of the pandemic. I got vaccinated, wore a mask, washed my hands, and did my best to avoid crowds and other events where I felt the risk factor might be high.

As word got out to family and friends, many of them asked how I got it. My stock response was, “Your guess is as good as mine!” In the interest of my father-in-law’s health, we’ve continued to stay away from large crowds and anything that might resemble a super spreader event.

I hesitated to write this article because we are all tired of hearing about Covid. However, I figured we all need a reminder now and then. It’s human nature to move on and I would never recommend obsessing over it. Call Covid what you want, but it is still out there, and you can take it from me; people are still being affected by it.