“Let’s be real, some people live for the drama, gossip, and to whine and complain. Choose to continue living. I may not have control over a lot of what’s going on in the world, but I do have control over what’s going on in MY world.”
‘If your friends on social media are spreading negativity, unfollow them. If the news makes you feel bad. STOP watching it.’: Woman says ‘I’m choosing not to marinate in fear during this time’
‘My friends have children that are dying. 8 separate friends received devastating news this week, and they’re waiting for the inevitable.’: Woman urges ‘find your suffering friends and show them they are seen’
“We’re separated by a glass wall — those who can see the suffering but don’t know what to do with it are on one side. Grief is on the other side. Take a sledgehammer to that glass wall. Find the people who are scared. Find the friends who are depressed, the person overwrought with terrible grief. Show them they are seen and they are worthy.”
‘We’re gonna get you cleaned up.’ It was time to turn off her machine. My husband leaned in to hug them, tears streaming down his face.’: Woman thanks nurses, doctors for their ‘selflessness’ during daughter’s final moments
“There were three nurses for my daughter 24 hours a day. When the time came for us to turn off the machine, the nurses braided her hair and put a blue bow in it. Never once did they act like we were bothering them. They watched us come in, crying over her, knowing these would be the last moments we would have with our baby girl.”
‘My husband got a ‘work pass’ today to prove why he should be out and about when most of the world is on lockdown.’: Woman urges ‘check on your friends’ financially affected by pandemic
“I don’t like the idea of him stepping into harm’s way, but I also can’t help but think of those without a ‘pass’ or a steady income at such an uncertain time. These are our neighbors, our playdate friends, our hair stylists, and servers at our favorite restaurants. Let’s remember to check on them, too.”
‘We’ve all been exposed. Not necessarily to the virus, but BY the virus.’: Woman explains why Covid-19 is ‘tearing down our walls’
“Corona is exposing us. Exposing our weak sides, our dark sides. It’s peeling back our layers and tearing down our walls. It’s calling into question, ‘What is the church without a building? What is my worth without an income? How do we love despite risk?'”
‘I haven’t done any homeschooling. Today, we will do nothing. We won’t go anywhere, and I’ll let them watch TV while eating kraft dinner.’: Mom assures ‘it’s okay to feel like you’re going crazy’
“To see the playgrounds where my kids used to spend hours taped off, scares me. To hear my daughter say ‘mommy when will everything be normal again?’ and me not having an answer, scares me. This is all new for me. For my kids, for us. For you. And that’s okay.”
‘Today my husband had to sit in the hallway, and listen through speaker phone, to hear our baby go to heaven with their sister.’: Mom grieves loss of baby alone, urges ‘please, just stay home’
“This was us. We didn’t get to grieve together. We couldn’t even hug and tell each other it would be okay or that we would survive this. A father couldn’t look at his baby one last time, and a mother had to get the worst news about their baby…alone.”
‘He tried to kill me. I kept calling for help; someone saw what was happening and kept walking.’: Young woman survives abuse, depression, self harm, finds solace in converting, ‘‘I finally have my confidence back’’
“It was HELL ON EARTH. I push memories out of my mind, like running from dad as he pointed a gun at my mom. I tried to kill myself one night. Luckily, my mother walked in. I will never forget the disappointment I saw on her face as she realized her baby girl wanted to end the life she gave to her.”
‘We won’t get to take fireball shots together when she turns 21. She’ll never get to drive the red jeep with no doors that she wanted. We were robbed.’: After losing daughter to flu, mom is reminded that ‘love is permanent’
“Disney released Frozen 2 early due to the quarantine. This was the first and last movie we saw in the movie theater with her. I can remember the girls playing that movie on repeat. I always thought she was just like Anna. I will have this pain in my heart for the rest of my life.”
‘I called my mom hysterically crying, ‘I don’t want to cross the border alone. It’s too dangerous!’ Everyone was silent.’: Young woman takes risk leaving US during pandemic, ‘I’ve never wanted to be home so badly’
“The news was showing tons of people who were stuck in different countries because of the border closing. ‘Will I be stuck in Mexico? I’m a United States citizen, they can’t tell me no, right?’ I was so nervous! I didn’t want it to be me.”