The woman sneezed without covering her mouth at the cafe in the Harlem district. Normally no one will notice, but this is no ordinary period.

A woman's sneeze in the closed space of the PROOF cafe on Adam Clayton Powell Boulevard in Harlem, New York, last week created an unusual chain reaction.

The man standing at the cashier desk shrank, three customers pulled out a spray bottle of disinfectant, and the barista continued her new habit of constantly cleaning the counter with detergent, then rubbing her hands with deodorant water. coincide.

"I'm just cleaning," said the barista Lina Vezzani-Katano.

The activities that take place inside PROOF are a miniature picture of daily life in the US during the Covid-19 era, as the number of infections and deaths from nCoV continues to rise.

Every American's mind revolves around questions such as: Is my mother staying in a sealed nursing home safe? Will my children be infected? Does the hospital have enough hospital beds? Is the death rate for nCoV in the US as high as Italy? Do I only have a mild cold or are these symptoms of any other illness?

Even the usual social gestures change. At a Mass last week at Blessed Sacrament Roman Catholic Church on the Upper West Side, New York, people greeted each other by holding up the victory symbol with two fingers, instead of shaking hands or kissing their cheeks. Just a few days later, the prayers at the church were canceled.

Even the usual social gestures change. At a Mass last week at Blessed Sacrament Roman Catholic Church on the Upper West Side, New York, people greeted each other by holding up the victory symbol with two fingers, instead of shaking hands or kissing their cheeks. Just a few days later, the prayers at the church were canceled.

Nina Haug, 25, a student at New York University School of Law, shares the same insecurity as people around her. Experience told her that in emergency situations like storms and floods, people often evacuated or seek refuge, but they were always together.

"At those times there was always someone to share the fear with," Haug said. "But now, everyone's reaction is to avoid others."

Because the classrooms were transferred to distance education, Haug spent most of his time locked in an apartment in Harlem. She tried to study to prepare for the exam, but her mind only worried about the health of her parents in Louisiana.

"I'm not very scared. I just felt confused. There was no clear answer, especially in the past two weeks. After two weeks, it was all a black hole," Haug said.

In Washington, which has recorded more than 40 deaths from nCoV, life is changing rapidly. Public schools were closed until at least the end of April, nursing homes stopped receiving guests, making the "residents" there feel abandoned and their families felt like they would never be hugged again. Relatives again.

Health care centers across the United States also have similar moves, arouse psychology of fear, confusion. Many people wonder what to do when faced with life and death situations.

In New Jersey, a care center for the elderly and disabled makes decisions that restrict visitors to minimize the risk of infection. Art Nacht could not help but worry about his father, Alan Nacht, who lives in the center.

At the age of 90, Alan often had to be admitted to and out of the hospital after a heart attack last summer. This leaves his son facing a difficult choice: Should he stay in a care center, where medical professionals are always available, or take his father home to avoid the risk of infection and possible exposure father more often.

On March 12, Art Nacht, 66, decided to take his father home to Bridgewater Township. He hired a home caregiver. Despite many obstacles in medicine, physiotherapy and diet, his father was extremely excited when he got home.

"My dad can't be left there. It's a virus incubator worse than a yacht," he said.

The epidemic also affects the spiritual life, beliefs and great plans of many people.

On March 13, Anselm Scrubb, a career counselor at a school, loaded a grocery in the trunk of a car outside the Ideal Food Basket supermarket in Kensington, Brooklyn, before taking part in an important weekend activity: Go. church mass. Scrubb often attended prayer meetings at the Brooklyn Synagogue, but this church, along with other regional religious facilities, was closed, making him feel troubled.

"It was my second family," he said.

In Atlanta, Sierra Tenhove, 22, and Ruben Jimenez, 23, were looking forward to the wedding taking place at their church on March 20. However, because of nCoV, the plan is unlikely to materialize.

The couple's initial fleeting concern has turned into real anxiety. Many relatives have offered not to attend the wedding. The company where they work requires them to isolate themselves two weeks after returning from a honeymoon in the Dominican Republic. The venue for the party announced that they had to drastically reduce the number of guests.

Even the contingency plan of getting married in a county court could be ruined by government offices across the country having to shut down or stop receiving guests. In the end, Tenhove and Jimenez decided to postpone the wedding.

No one knows when the church or school will be closed, nor does anyone ask when normal life will return to the United States because no one has the correct answer. The feeling of uncertainty only adds to the psychological confusion, hesitation in the people.

"When you do not know the size and duration of the epidemic will last, this is extremely annoying," said David S. Jones, professor of medical culture at Harvard University. The high school of his two children in Newton, Massachusetts, was closed without a scheduled activity date.

"We don't know what to do next," he said. "The plague recalls 9/11".

However, the terrorist attack 19 years ago brought people together, raising solidarity and sense of community across the United States. With Covid-19, the impact that the epidemic brought was completely opposite. People are advised to stay indoors, to avoid crowding to minimize personal contact. The epidemic is pushing people farther apart.

In order to adapt to the life of the pandemic, Haug, a law student in New York, is looking for ways to get rid of the thought of uncertainty from her head. In addition to playing with pets, she also finds joy in baking.

"But I don't want to make too big cakes, because I don't have anyone to eat with me," Haug said.