I'm thankful we stocked up ahead of time. A few weeks ago, John asked me to think about what things we might need extra of if we had to be stuck at home for a while. He had been following what was happening in China and suspected the virus might start affecting us soon. We keep a fairly well stocked pantry but I thought of some things to buy extras of. One thing I put on the list was more toilet paper. He questioned me about it and said he had gotten some recently and did we really need more. We usually get the 12-roll packs. I reminded him of what he said and that I thought we might want to have some extra on hand, just in case. He said, “Ok,” with a sigh like he was humoring me but thought it was silly.
Neither one of us imagined that a couple of weeks later there would be a run on the stuff.
-
But if you didn't manage to stock up in time and you can travel, I know where you can get some. It has beautiful sandy beaches too. A full-time RV couple we watched on YouTube Friday said there is plenty of toilet paper where they are in Baja Sur, Mexico. They wondered if that meant the Mexicans were not as panicked about the pandemic.
It reminded me of the summer I attended a Bible Institute in Mexico back in 1993. Being the only American among the female students it was definitely a cross-cultural experience. I shared a tiny dorm room with several other young women. The six of us also shared a bathroom (toilets and showers) with several others. The school was on a tight budget and didn’t provide frills like toilet paper. So, I assumed we girls would take turns buying toilet paper to keep our bathroom supplied. But I quickly discovered that the others did not have the same expectation. They were happy to use the toilet paper that I put in there but no one else ever seemed to contribute any themselves. In fact, it seemed like every time I went to the toilet there was no toilet paper no matter how recently I had put some in there. I was baffled. I wondered how the others were managing if there was never any toilet paper in the restroom, except when I took it with me. I finally realized it was a strictly BYOTP situation. My roommates each kept their own toilet paper with their things in the dorm room and when they needed to do their business they went and got it. When they were done, they put it back with their things. It felt vaguely selfish. But in desperation I overcame my qualms and started doing the same thing.
As the weeks went by, I also noticed that more and more pieces were missing from the old catalogs and magazines that always seemed to be lying about on a table near the restroom. When I saw a girl tearing a piece off one before going to the restroom one day I finally realized why. For those who didn’t have the means, or weren’t too picky, that was their toilet paper.
Maybe there hasn’t been a run on toilet paper in Baja partly because it is seen as a luxury that they can make do without if necessary. Of course, my summer in Mexico was pre-internet. Catalogs and magazines were all on paper back then. I wonder what they would use now?
Anyway, we are taking this pandemic seriously, as we all should. It's no joke!
I have something called IgA deficiency which is a type of low immunity. It means my mucus membranes throughout my body are more susceptible to infections and can take longer to heal if infected. So I am practicing social distancing. I am not going out much and John has started working from home. We stayed home from church yesterday. We are wondering what to do about our respective small group meetings. My ladies small group usually meets in our home two times a month. And John's men's group meets weekly at a restaurant. We'll have to play it by ear so to speak. In the mean time I don't want to become emotionally distant from my friends and family so I am making an effort to make phone calls more.
What things are you doing to stay healthy and reduce the possible spread? Please comment below. And let me know how I can be praying for you too. God bless.
The God of peace be with you all. Amen.
Romans 15:33
I just wanted to add a post script to the above. In Mexico we always put used toilet paper or whatever passed for it into a box next to the toilet. So those magazine/catalog scraps I wrote about above never got flushed down the toilet!
ReplyDelete