“Today I enter my second day of home quarantine in a self-isolation regime” – By Samora Machel Jr.

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“Today I enter my second day of home quarantine in a self-isolation regime” – By Samora Machel Jr.

11:09 CAT | 23 Mar 2020

Photo courtesy: Samora Machel Jr. / Facebook

Translated from original text in Portuguese posted on Samora Machel Junior’s Facebook page, on March 19, 2020, at 00:10 am

Not because I was diagnosed with Covid-19, or because I have any symptoms. It’s just that I have returned from a business trip to a country affected by the coronavirus where I stayed for five days, more than enough time to interact with several people whose health status I didn’t and I don’t know.

Even before returning, I debated for a long time with my family about what to do upon returning to Mozambique. I confess that, initially, because I had no symptoms and because I thought I had not interacted with anyone visibly infected, I did come to think that it would not make sense to go in voluntary quarantine. Some people, on the other hand, felt that I should get tested, just in case.

Before making a decision, I read as much as I could and listened to as many as I could about this matter. I learned two important lessons from this.

Taking the test without symptoms (despite having been in a risky context), especially in a country that has few tests, would be an unreasonable decision and a selfish attitude.

On the other hand, not to do the quarantine just because you think you have not had contact with anyone infected to the naked eye, would also be a stupid decision, because a person can be infected for 10 to 12 days without symptoms and be capable, during that period, of transmitting the virus.

So, our decision – yes, ours, because it was a decision that was going to affect my entire immediate family and the success of which decision would depend on the collaboration of all of them – was to do the voluntary home quarantine in a self-isolation regime, that is, in my home, but isolated from the rest of my nuclear family.

Even before I arrived, a separate bedroom and bathroom (we are lucky and I am aware that we are very privileged) were prepared for me.

When I got home, I washed my hands at the entrance and went straight to the shower and then closed myself in my room.

There were not the usual compliments to my wife (who only saw me entering from a distance) and when, at the end of the day, my children arrived, I only “saw” them by their voices.

This has been the biggest shock: the physical separation from the family. My wife, wearing gloves and a mask, leaves me the food and laundry washed at the door of the room and, by the same method, collects the dirty clothes, closed in a bag, which is washed separately from the rest of the family’s clothes, and at almost boiling.

After the kids say their “Bye, Dad! See you tomorrow!” from a distance, [my wife] Jovita and I try to kill the longing by “dating” through the closed door. That’s what we have for the next two weeks to keep our spirits up.

The day-to-day is totally different from what I’m used to. I wash my hands four times a day, despite being confined to my room. After eating, I wash my own dishes, which I keep inside my room. I take a battery of vitamins and supplements to keep my immune system strong. I drink warm water with lemon and take my temperature several times a day. If someone needs to enter my space, they have to wear a mask and I also wear the mask. I spend the day working on the computer, watching TV, listening to music and chatting with family and friends via cell phone and social media. And I tell you: after a while, it’s crazy!

Fortunately, I still have no symptoms, but I will continue this routine for at least another 12 days.

Why do I subject myself and my family to this sacrifice? It is not so much for my sake, but because I am aware that it is vital to protect my family and other people with whom I may interact, in case I am infected. And nothing right now guarantees that in a few days I will not have symptoms and discover that I am infected. If that happens, I will have saved a lot of people, especially those I love the most, from this outcome

Prevention, however costly, is much better than disease and treatment. I have no doubt about this!

It is not being easy! Knowing that your loved ones are close, but you cannot see or approach them is not only hard. It is against all of our human instincts. But this is, after all, the definition of true love. I venture to say that this is probably one of the greatest tests of personal determination and discipline I have passed through. I manage the situation one day at a time, aware that it is hard, but even more aware that I will not and cannot give up.

I decided to share this immensely personal experience to give strength to all families that are now or will be undergoing this necessary measure and obligation. Feel satisfied by the fact that the price we pay as a family has as a prize the protection of the rest of our compatriots.

Most likely, the worst is yet to come for us as a country. Our decision as a family in relation to the quarantine and my decision to share this story publicly are a very small and modest contribution towards what still awaits us hopefully being a little less difficult. The great lesson I am learning and I want to share is that, in these matters, we fall individually but together we shall overcome.

By Samora Machel Júnior