Our nation is on the brink of hitting a beyond-terrible milestone in this current pandemic: a half-million Americans dying from COVID-19.
Today, to honor to those Americans killed by this hideous disease, our newly elected President Biden is holding a ceremony. As our nation pays our lost fellow Americans that special attention, please join me in taking at least one minute to reflect on those loved ones, for everyone who has passed away was loved by somebody.
And send some comforting thoughts to their families and friends, and to all the tireless health care workers.
Those we’ve lost to COVID-19
Thankfully we have new vaccines to protect us against COVID-19, but sadly those nearly half-million people died before they could be vaccinated.
A CNN newsletter reports this morning that “one in every 660 Americans have now died from the disease.”
Maybe you have lost a friend or family member. I send you my condolences. Our family was hit—one of my sister’s adult grand-daughters caught it and died, one of my friends lost her husband, and another friend recently faced almost-certain death from COVID but thankfully is recovering. We are shaken.
An invisible enemy is still an enemy
We can’t see this killer. That’s a real problem. So please continue wearing a mask, social distancing, and hand washing routines to protect yourself and others.
Near the start of this pandemic, I wrote a post here about my father, a microbiologist during the 1950s – 1970s, who worked in the state of Maryland as a public health official.
Growing up with a dad like that infused me with an awareness of the invisible-with-the-naked-eye world of good and bad bacteria, and bad viruses surrounding us everyday. I gained a healthy fear of the bad germs. Although humans can’t seem to go through life completely free of sickness, I learned that simple hygiene can save your life.
Keep on keepin’ on
From the CNN newsletter:
“Despite the vaccination rollout progress, leading medical experts and associations have pleaded with people to keep following the rules. The pandemic is far from over and the virus keeps spreading, albeit at a slower rate. According to the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, another 91,000 Americans are projected to die from the disease by June 1.
“‘It really is a terrible situation that we’ve been through and that we’re still going through,’ said Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. ‘And that’s the reason why we keep insisting to continue with the public health measures — because we don’t want this to get much worse than it already is.’”
[Source: CNN Coronavirus Update newsletter, 2-22-2021. 7:00 a.m.]
Relief is coming
Let’s be thankful for the progress we’ve made and remember that hope lies ahead as more people get vaccinated or gain immunity from having survived COVID.
See you on the other side.
Thanks for reading!
Your writer on the wing,
Charlene
Linda Goddard
Dear Charlene,
Thank you for your lovely and compassionate words, and I’m so grateful for your reminder to us to remember those who have died from this dreadful virus, and to continue to use the safety routines to protect ourselves and others–even those of us who have been vaccinated.