“We haven’t been publicly ‘open’ about who has the ‘problem.’ We don’t feel the need to share it everywhere because it doesn’t matter and quite frankly, it’s no one’s business. At this point, it changed to the reality we may not ever have kids, period.”
“One day he’ll have you pinned on the floor with all of his weight, smashing your face into the carpet. I know you don’t want to believe it happened at all. I know you wish, with all your heart, things were different. I know you feel worthless. But I also know you can do it. Stop trying to figure it out, stop trying to make a plan and just run.”
“I have never met them. I do not know their faces, surnames, ages, job titles or nationalities, but I know their numbers, and if I ever need ‘any help with groceries over the coming weeks,’ they are close. I’ve read that note, several times over, tears welling in my eyes as I remember I am not alone.”
“Yesterday the teachers and administrators from my daughter’s school decided to put on a car parade. As her teacher drove away, she shouted out the window, ‘I love you, Campbell!’ They all knew her. Not just her homeroom or specials teachers, but every single one. As a special needs parent, I can’t explain how much that kind of acceptance means.”
“His doctors were hopeful we could take him out of the house for the first time EVER this summer. We could introduce him to his family members and friends. We could let him play on a playground, like a normal toddler. However, now our future is unknown again as the pandemic has erupted.”
“‘People were dying. There weren’t enough ventilators, or masks. Big cities were hit very, very hard,’ she says. She hesitates for a second, thinking back to this faraway time. ‘I think it changed us. It changed our country. It made us better.’”
“She isolated herself often. Instead of interacting or playing with toys, she would sit in the corner next to the bookshelf, pretending to read. At first, I turned the other way and denied there was something wrong. I couldn’t mentally prepare myself for something I didn’t want. Then the script flipped. I realized she’s not of any less value.”
“My heart broke. When did we decide it was okay to pit each other’s struggles against each other? When did we decide it was okay to compare each other’s grief?”
“To the nurse that pushed sedation and paralytics into the veins of your favorite physician. To the provider sleeping in a tent, hotel, camper, basement, or garage in an effort to minimize your family’s exposure. My prayer is you never wake up in the night sweating or gasping for breath. May you stay the course as one of the ‘mild’ cases.”
“I knew those tears were more than just spilled Cheerios.”
