Got the sniffles? Knocked down for a few days by the flu? Kicking yourself for forgetting that flu shot?
Not to make light of illness and all the discomfort and hassle that go with it – been there, done that, although this year … knock on wood. The current outbreak has, cruelly and sadly, claimed a number of people right here in New Hampshire.
But I did stumble across an idea that may help you feel a tiny bit better: Hit up your favorite search engine for “influenza,” “epidemic” and “1918.” Read awhile; then see if you suddenly feel a tad more chipper, if not thankful, that this is 2013 and not 1918.
All the flu talk and cautions over past weeks got me wondering what it may have been like to fall ill seemingly out of the blue, and just hours later struggling to breathe, move or do much of anything. Or for the “lucky” ones, how did they cope with worrying 24/7 if they, or a loved one or two or three would be the next proverbial domino to fall?
For whatever reason, Nashua seems to have fared comparatively well through the current epidemic. In 1918, influenza was already a topic of concern in other parts of the nation when it drew its first mention in our predecessor-in-name Nashua Telegraph.
That first mention wasn’t even about Nashua: “Influenza Raging at Brockton,” was the headline on the small story at the bottom of Page 1.![]()
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