Where were you when you realized the pandemic would change everyday life? Here’s what our readers said.

“At home in Lakeview, my wife and I had been following the news closely and saw the first few cases as emerged in the U.S. We had tickets to see a play at Steppenwolf on Wednesday, March 11, to see, ironically ‘Bug.’ When we sat down, both we and the couple next to us used sanitizer on the seats we were in. In the moment we laughed somewhat uneasily together. On Thursday, March 12, we had tickets for the CSO and felt uneasy about whether or not to go. We got ready, and just before we left, my wife checked their website and saw they had canceled the performance. That is the moment I started to realize life was about to change considerably. We canceled dinner plans with friends for the following night.” — Stephen Granzyk, Chicago