“It was March. I started to feel the school year winding down and the lump in my throat growing. I put an app on my phone, counting down the days. Not because I was looking forward to summer, but because I wanted to make each day I had left count. We were together one day, and without warning, they were gone.”
“There are people out there who are claiming this is a hoax, that it’s some made up BS. She’s had a mama who has worked in the ER her whole life, but she knows something is wrong. She’s pulled me aside twice now, asking me to stay home. ‘Mama, you have asthma and have a higher risk.’ She’s 7 years old. Let that sink in.”
“I wanted to be ‘normal’ like my friends. I started neglecting my health. As you can imagine, it doesn’t take too long to forget about the nasty finger pricks and injections. I had to skip some because of ‘what people would think.’”
“Everyone kept texting and telling us they love us, they are thinking of us, and they know how hard Easter is going to be. If it were up to me, I would have just skipped Easter entirely. Our picture-perfect family really isn’t picture-perfect anymore.”
“‘Mom, I’ve been thinking about something but please don’t say ‘no’ until I’ve said everything I have to say.’ I ended the conversation with, ‘I need to talk to dad about it.’ ‘But Daddy said yes!’ Apparently, guinea pigs are exempt from this unwritten rule.”
“Once I made my way to middle and high school, things became a struggle. A disability is a difficult diagnosis, yes, but it isn’t the be-all, end-all of your story.”
“I’m currently on a 5-day quarantine while I wait to get my test results back. I’m locked away from the kids while my husband manages all 3 of them AND works full-time. I felt an enormous weight lift off.”
“I would make an effort to hide my bump if we were at school or sports functions. The quips came out of the woodwork. ’They’re crazy! This will be the end of them…’ I tried to involve the girls as much as possible. I wanted them to feel the joy I was feeling.”
“We welcomed our baby into this world. It just so happened to be my brother’s due date. It’s a moment which sends CHILLS down my spine.”
“I am an ‘essential worker.’ A 9-1-1 emergency dispatcher to be exact. We’re feeling the change at work, just like all the other front-line people. I wish for you somebody who will carry your purse. Because sometimes, that’s all you really need.”
