“‘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.’”
‘When I was 12, something called coronavirus ripped through our country. It was so scary.’ She takes a moment to shake her head at the memory of it all.’: Mom imagines grandchildren’s questions about the quarantine, ‘It was the happiest time of my life’
‘Babe, there’s something not right with Nevaeh.’ I felt defeated. Why my daughter?’: Mom brings awareness to autism after daughter’s diagnosis, ‘Being different is beautiful and inspiring’
“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.”
‘She was struggling to feed her kids. ‘You can get another job, but you can’t get a life back. Quit whining and be thankful you’re not part of the death toll.’: Woman says ‘it’s okay to mourn and struggle with change’
“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?”
‘Today you cried in the hospital parking garage. Your face broke when you looked at the last picture you took of your sleeping child.’: Woman says you are more than ‘just a nurse’
“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 feel hideous and weak. I want it to end.’ Chemo was killing me.’: Stage 3 breast cancer survivor encourages others during pandemic, ‘You can find beauty, laughter, and joy’
“I don’t know how else to say it. I never once imagined my biggest life lessons would come while being bald and sick as my breast was slowly consumed by cancer. There will be life before and after the pandemic, and I believe the after will be sweeter.”
‘Will anyone love me after I transition?’ I knew all along who I was, I just didn’t know where I belonged in the world.’: Queer, non-binary, trans person comes to terms with identity, urges ‘you’re never alone’
“During the first appointment to assess my eligibility for hormones…I lied. A lot. I told elaborate tales about how I had ‘always dreamed of being a man.’ I worried I was a poor representation of the trans community. No one would suggest a woman who had a double mastectomy is no longer a woman because she lacks breasts.”
‘Every night, we create these letters for hospice patients and nursing home residents who aren’t allowed visitors right now.’: Family share acts of kindness for ‘lonely’ elderly during pandemic
“There are so many people out there unable to have their loved ones visit them at all. Knowing how scared and lonely this time may be for them just breaks my heart.”
‘Today my dad walked over 4 miles to my house so he could see baby Elliana through the window…again.’: New dad urges ‘stay home for the grandparents who want to hold their new grandchild more than anything’
“While my wife was pregnant, I don’t think an hour went by where my dad didn’t brag about becoming a grandpa soon. Now, his granddaughter is finally here and the only thing he can hold are pictures. It breaks my heart. If this grandpa can resist coming inside and loving on his first grandchild, I know the rest of us can do this too.”
‘His frail fingers shook as he grasped the bananas. I felt a gut punch for this little old man bagging my groceries. Why was he even working?!’: Woman says ‘stay home, there are people who could die because they can’t’
“I quickly paid and pushed my cart to my car, my face feeling flush with shame. This precious man, for reasons our society is too selfish to address, must continue to go to work. If you find yourself wondering if the errand is worth the risk, look at this picture.”
‘We cancelled our baby shower. I went from Googling dangly monkey earrings to ‘28-week baby premature survival rates.’: Woman expecting her rainbow baby says ‘I will continue to stay home and fight to be a helper’
“But then, people I love dearly got laid off. But then, I found myself on the phone with older family members I naively thought would live forever, suddenly wondering ‘what if.’ But then, people started to die. In what felt like a matter of minutes, it became more clearly into focus what was really at stake.”
