When Steph and I were maybe sophomores in HS, we signed up for all these different science camps for the summer. Steph got into the one focused on the environment and I got into a biology camp (yes, I am fully aware of the picture I just painted of my HS self for you). Both of those camps required an up-to-date tetanus shot. Steph’s grandpa usually picked us up from school every day and then he would take us to Sonic, or we’d stop to see Steph’s mom at the tag office. This day, Steph’s dad, Mike, picked us up and we went to the tag office. When we got there, Steph’s mom Jenny said “Mike, do you still want to take Steph to Claremore?” It was raining and sometimes there’s an issue with the roads between Collinsville and Claremore when it rains. Me, being all pestery and curious started bugging Steph about why she had to go to Claremore. Steph replied “I have to go…” then she paused and I could see her face light up with an idea. Then she said “I’m going to get a tetanus shot and Cindy needs one too! Mom, you should call Pat and see if Cindy can go too!” I laughed and said “My mom is not going to let this happen.”

And then my mom totally let it happen.

Wednesday, I called a random number my friend Jeff sent me for a vaccination place thinking I would make an appointment for later in the week. The woman on the other end of the line said “Can you get here right now?” and before I knew it I was getting my first dose of the COVID vaccine. Just like all those years ago with Steph, I started my day with no idea that I would at some point be poked with a needle. Just like all those years ago, it all happened so fast that I still haven’t really mentally processed it all. It took ten minutes to drive to the clinic. I spent another ten minutes in line and another five minutes filling out paperwork. Then it took a second to get the shot, after which I was herded to a recovery room to wait for fifteen minutes. I was so flustered that when I left the recovery room, I crashed into a National Guardsman. He was very very apologetic and all I could say was “Oh my goodness, you’re so so tall!” Then I was home, blinking and thinking “WHAT JUST HAPPENED!” I had a bandaid on my right arm and vaccination card in my left hand with instructions for coming back to get the second dose.

The pain in my arm today is not as great as the hope I feel in my heart. While I don’t believe we will ever go back to the normal we had over a year ago, I do believe that this new normal is going to be a happier one.