So how's 2020 going for you so far? A little crazy? Welcome to reality. This folks, is how it is going to look (and stay) for awhile. As schools scramble to figure out how to re-open, teachers are faced with trepidation. I know I am personally scared and understand that should I catch COVID-19, it is probably the end of me. I am 60 years old and have underlying conditions. My husband, also a teacher, is 72 years old with underlying conditions. Again, the same fate would await him. And yet, we are going with whatever the state and district decides. Why? Because our nation's children did nothing with online learning last spring. Parents struggled as we churned out assignments, only to not have them be turned in. Calls home did nothing. They went unanswered. Even those who were close to graduating did not attend online school. Yes, our children need teachers, because parents are unable or unwilling to help their children. But comes the next caveat...we hope that our government will do the right thing and not open prematurely. However, when watching some governors say that the economy is more important than peoples' lives, it definitely gives me pause.
I'd like to think that our governor has our best interests at heart...and I think he is doing his best. We are closing bars but leaving casinos open. People want to go back to work...I get that. We need the economy working. I also get that. But in a day and age when people are arguing whether to mask or not, are we ready to open? I guess people still haven't figure out this is real. Despite the fact that we have 3.37 million cases in the U.S., folks still want to believe this is a conspiracy. Despite doctors saying that our ICU units are filled to capacity, people still decry it's a hoax to unseat Trump. We don't have to do that...he is managing to do it all by himself.
As of today, I stay home. I rarely go to the store. I have been to Target twice in 2020. That's it. When restaurants first reopened, my husband and I went out. I think we've gone 5 times total since March. We used to dine out that much every month, pre-COVID-19. I am not complaining. I wish more people would stay home. I think we could get a handle on this faster and with longer-lasting results.
What I have learned in 2020 is this...people are inherently selfish. They do not care about others as much as I had hoped. We are used to instantaneous fixes. This particular problem does not, at the time, have a solution other than patience (which we do not have) and self-isolating (which we are unwilling to do). When offered social-distancing and wearing a mask, people were not happy with that. Full on confrontations began in stores with people spitting and coughing on each other. Is this really the way we act in a civilized society. Say all you want about 2nd and 3rd world countries but they at least have a handle on this while the U.S. does not.
So how about this? Why not think of others first? YES, PUT OTHERS FIRST! Wear the damn mask. Stand 6 feet apart. A person with a compromised immune system does not always appear to be compromised. And if they send someone to the store for them, they can catch it from them. So, I beg you to think of others.
Next, listen to the MEDICAL EXPERTS. That would NOT include your Facebook and social media cronies. I personally, don't like to listen to the news, but I am willing to follow CDC guidelines and listen to Dr. Fauci, a premiere physician who has served under six U.S. Presidents. I tend to believe that he might know just a little more than people on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or even, my friends. So, follow the advice of the experts and not what YOU think. And by the way, the President and Vice-President are not medical experts. So please, do not be lulled into thinking they are. They are public servants. Period.
Last, if you are one of those conspiracy theorists, a person who doesn't give a damn about others, or refuses to listen to experts, then you need to become informed. If you can open your mind to the possibility that this is real, that people really are dying (young and old) and that maybe, just maybe, following the advice given by renowned doctors and scientists, maybe...just maybe....we can contain this thing. Right now, we are the pariah of the world. And we should be. A country as great as the United States -- with the best medical facilities-- cannot get a handle on this. Think about it.
For now, I believe the answer is within us: change your mind, change your reality. Change the landscape of our nation. It's really kind of that simple.
I'd like to think that our governor has our best interests at heart...and I think he is doing his best. We are closing bars but leaving casinos open. People want to go back to work...I get that. We need the economy working. I also get that. But in a day and age when people are arguing whether to mask or not, are we ready to open? I guess people still haven't figure out this is real. Despite the fact that we have 3.37 million cases in the U.S., folks still want to believe this is a conspiracy. Despite doctors saying that our ICU units are filled to capacity, people still decry it's a hoax to unseat Trump. We don't have to do that...he is managing to do it all by himself.
As of today, I stay home. I rarely go to the store. I have been to Target twice in 2020. That's it. When restaurants first reopened, my husband and I went out. I think we've gone 5 times total since March. We used to dine out that much every month, pre-COVID-19. I am not complaining. I wish more people would stay home. I think we could get a handle on this faster and with longer-lasting results.
What I have learned in 2020 is this...people are inherently selfish. They do not care about others as much as I had hoped. We are used to instantaneous fixes. This particular problem does not, at the time, have a solution other than patience (which we do not have) and self-isolating (which we are unwilling to do). When offered social-distancing and wearing a mask, people were not happy with that. Full on confrontations began in stores with people spitting and coughing on each other. Is this really the way we act in a civilized society. Say all you want about 2nd and 3rd world countries but they at least have a handle on this while the U.S. does not.
So how about this? Why not think of others first? YES, PUT OTHERS FIRST! Wear the damn mask. Stand 6 feet apart. A person with a compromised immune system does not always appear to be compromised. And if they send someone to the store for them, they can catch it from them. So, I beg you to think of others.
Next, listen to the MEDICAL EXPERTS. That would NOT include your Facebook and social media cronies. I personally, don't like to listen to the news, but I am willing to follow CDC guidelines and listen to Dr. Fauci, a premiere physician who has served under six U.S. Presidents. I tend to believe that he might know just a little more than people on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or even, my friends. So, follow the advice of the experts and not what YOU think. And by the way, the President and Vice-President are not medical experts. So please, do not be lulled into thinking they are. They are public servants. Period.
Last, if you are one of those conspiracy theorists, a person who doesn't give a damn about others, or refuses to listen to experts, then you need to become informed. If you can open your mind to the possibility that this is real, that people really are dying (young and old) and that maybe, just maybe, following the advice given by renowned doctors and scientists, maybe...just maybe....we can contain this thing. Right now, we are the pariah of the world. And we should be. A country as great as the United States -- with the best medical facilities-- cannot get a handle on this. Think about it.
For now, I believe the answer is within us: change your mind, change your reality. Change the landscape of our nation. It's really kind of that simple.
