The Foreign Service Journal, July-August 2020

70 JULY-AUGUST 2020 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL On Tuesday, March 17, my telephone rang. The health unit had learned of my stopover in London and placed me on self-quarantine. Suddenly, I found myself at home trying to set up telework, fuming at the inconvenience when there was so much work to be done at the office. At least I could get a local veterinarian to examine our cat, who began a regimen of medications. When I reported a mild temperature to the health unit, a team in full protec- tive gear came to test me. On Friday, March 20, I learned of the result: I had tested positive for the coronavirus. Fortunately, because of the health unit’s quick work, my limited time at the embassy prevented the virus from spreading. Over the weekend, I told everyone that it felt like I had a mild cold. The health unit called me peri- odically to ask if I had any trouble breathing, which was disconcerting. By Monday, my temperature climbed to 102 degrees, and my muscles and joints ached. I felt weak and had no sense of taste; eating was a chore. The reality of COVID-19 sank in when I became out of breath after walking upstairs slightly fast. I could no longer take a deep breath without coughing; my reduced lung capacity scared me. Now I had no qualms about being away from work—I felt use- less. I looked like hell, and so did the cat. My veterinarian had to go into quarantine. Before he did, he dropped off an alarming amount of injectable medicines. Amid my illness, I had to embrace distance medicine for felines by learning how to administer injections. I kept the cat com- pany by taking my own array of medications. Time in quaran- tine passed slowly. Every day, I connected with my spouse in Takoma Park, Maryland, by video call, fielding numerous ques- tions about the cat frommy children. The embassy’s circumstances changed quickly over the next two and a half weeks as American staff began to telework or leave on authorized departure. Most Pakistani employees went on administrative leave or began teleworking. Finally, the cat and I recovered our health. After a second COVID-19 test on April 10, this time negative, I was free to go to the embassy. When I arrived, I felt like Rip Van Winkle, having awakened to a time far into the future. The compound seemed eerily empty as it operated with reduced personnel. A skeleton USAID staff continued to manage projects, contribute to embassy reporting and successfully obtain more COVID-19 supplemental funds. Colleagues dressed more casually, and some had cut their own hair, as dry cleaners and the barber had both closed. We compared notes and commiser- ated over hardships while dealing with our families’ anguish at home. Like me, everyone seemed to know someone who had a can- celed graduation ceremony, kids frustrated by the sudden transi- tion to online classes, or friends and family hating the lockdown. Disappointments and aggravations abound, but there is also hope. Now I am working again, enjoying our esprit de corps at post and supporting the COVID-19 response. I am grateful to the health unit, which enabled my recovery while protecting our embassy community. Michael Nehrbass is USAID deputy mission director in Islamabad. He graduated from the National War College in 2019 and has served overseas on every continent where USAID operates. Michael Nehrbass and his cat, Boi, who are both healthy again. MICHAELNEHRBASS I could no longer take a deep breath without coughing; my reduced lung capacity scared me. Now I had no qualms about being away from work—I felt useless. I looked like hell, and so did the cat.