When I reflect from listening to the stories of my father, he had his moments. But don’t we all? Dad used to get so irritated at times when people used no common sense during the pandemic. From the chaos came calm, and that is what mom and dad taught me.
While the recollection of my earlier years will never be felt, I can still use the knowledge I have gained over the years and see through that lens in how I was raised.
Sure, the world was in a state of confusion, and being stuck in isolation enclosed in a home with a crying baby (me), two dogs, two cats, and nothing to do but to get by, I would normally view those months in such a way as one would living through wartime.
Learning from the history books on how people survived under extreme circumstances, this didn’t come close. But it did offer me a scope of some sort. One of the funniest things mom and dad told me was the people hoarding toilet paper.
To this day, I have yet to figure that mystery out. I get sad reading about humanities inability to overcome the insipid hatred they have for one another.
But I would imagine the pandemic would have been somewhat different, in that there was just a singular common enemy that in a way brought people together, but not one as transparent as an invading army, or cruel dictator bent on oppression.
I guess that is the most difficult part of being human…casting blame is one thing, and pinpointing an enemy is another. But a virus is a different beast. It’d take years for me to put two and two together in that regards, learning the scientific nature of what happens when a sickness runs rampant across the globe.
Fear…that is the one thing that comes to mind. And we learn that at such an early age, and on so many different levels it develops as you grow. I have had my share of getting frightened in those first three months, that most certainly took place.
So I had a base understanding of what it meant to have fear, and learning and growing in the months following through the stories and reflections, it did help me grasp a better understanding of what was taking place throughout the world.
Dad always said it “was complex”, and that there will be countless and endless debates about what happened for months and years to come. Let alone the number of books written about the pandemic. I’ve read some, but not all.
I’d imagine my first months in this world was safe. We as a family were pretty well isolated and locked down. Mom had to remind dad constantly to wear his mask and use gloves when he went to the store, that’s what she said anyway.
I asked dad if he wanted to state his case, funny he said, “no comment”. It made me laugh, because I know my dad, and my mom. The love the share for one another, is the same love shared for me.
My name is Clark…and these are my stories that have been passed down to me over the years of my life, which have taken root in my consciousness in such a way that I was determined to set forth on a path to effect change on a global level. No one knows who I truly am, and to be honest…I still have yet to figure that out.
About the author
My name is Phil Bova. I have been an avid comic book reader since 1981, I was 7 years old when I was hooked on the genre. While I have my favorites just as much as the next person, I thoroughly enjoy story depth, complexity and artwork that reflects the prose.
I finished my Masters degree in 2012, focusing on historical studies, special emphasis on the cross section of popular culture and feminism. My project delved into the character of Wonder Woman and her creator William Marston as the catalyst for a pro-feminist movement on the range of comic books before, during, and after World War II.
I became an educator, and taught elementary school for two years before pivoting into high school where I was able to focus on conducting my elective courses on Comic Books as Literary Merit. I produced my own curriculum on my courses, and selected all the reading materials that helped focus on the genre, primarily books that display the ever changing landscape of our world culture in the writings.
I now work as an administrator, and devote my time to being married to my beautiful wife, Denise, and taking care of our lovely little boy, Clark Tiberius Bova (on which my writing prompts are based). We have two amazing dogs, Penelope and Myrrah, along with two annoying cats, Indy and Lois. We live in the city of St. Louis, Mo.
I am co-host of an ongoing podcast titled the Podcast of OA alongside my good friend, Myron.
