Oakville, ON — While she’s sure you’d be in touch if anything was wrong, your mum just called to check you don’t have coronavirus.
“I’ve heard it’s been going around and I wanted to be sure,” she said of the deadly flu-like virus that recently originated in Hubei province, China, “If you think you’ve picked it up, let me know and I’ll be right over with some ginger tea and a hot water bottle”.
Even though the rate of coronavirus in Canada is only 2 out of 37.59 million, your mum has made it clear that “you can never be too careful” and “you did get that bad cold last year”.
“You haven’t been to Wuhan or Beijing recently, have you? I know you don’t always tell me your weekend plans”
This is not the first time your mum has checked in with concerns, having asked you over the holidays if you’ve been careful to avoid lyme disease, and mentioning she thinks she recently “had a bit of typhoid.”
Public health officials recommend preventing infection by washing your hands often and avoiding close contact with people who are sick, while your mum suggests taking echinacea, disinfecting your apartment and “not kissing or ‘you know what-ing’ with anyone for a few days”
While health officials assure Canadians that there is a very low risk of infection and it’s not yet known if the coronavirus is any more deadly than an ordinary flu, your mum wants you to know she’s had a bit of a cough for a few days, so she’s making her arrangements.
