Prairie Girls

Rylie

My sister Edith had a boyfriend named Lucas, and he was our brother’s best friend. We didn’t know she liked him until he went to war. I discovered she wrote to him every day just like she did our brother, George. Edith worried about both of them and had trouble focusing on anything, but her concerns. I tried my best to cover for her.

Everyone was distracted when Mother became ill from the flu. We nearly lost her, and she still hasn’t recovered fully. One of our neighbors down the street had a baby who died because of the flu. I hope no one else gets sick.

 

The Flu

By Judy

The flu was a deadly illness during Rylie’s lifetime, and it is still a serious illness. I lived in an apartment with three, four or five other girls my senior year in college. The number of girls living there varied from week to week. One, two, or maybe even three girls were off campus doing professional semesters, and rarely were we all living there at the same time. Now, I cannot even remember the names of everyone who lived in that apartment. One nameless roommate, though, brought the Hong Kong flu back to the apartment after Christmas break. It was not a welcomed gift.

None of us were nursing students nor had much experience with the flu. One girl was ill enough we did take her to the emergency room. Fortunately, I did not require a trip to the doctor, but I did miss a couple of days’ classes. During my long week of aching, moaning, and complaining, one of my roommates, whose name I do remember, did my laundry. It meant a lot to me. Thank you again, Ginny.

I recovered from the Hong Kong flu and have never again been that sick with the flu. However, there are those who will say each time I talk about having the Hong Kong flu, the severity of my illness increases.