“What is the point” he said with tears in his eyes. ”Every one here is awful, people are doing what ever they want, without thinking of anyone but themselves.” I wanted to tell him he was wrong, that deep down people are good, that they want to do whats best for everyone, that they want to help the vulnerable, but after a year and a half in lock down, and another (preventable) wave of Covid-19 surging, I am just as disheartened with humanity.
Two members of my immediate family were at a higher risk of getting serious complications of Covid-19. We followed all of the science, we listened to precautions. We ordered groceries and kept visits to the store to an absolute necessity. We homeschooled. We talked about social responiblity and just how imperitive it is to protect those who can not protect themselves.
When cases started to drop last summer, we were ready started to seeing family and friends who were following CDC guidelines, except almost no one was. (we have a very small circle that was being careful, you know who you are, we love you. You were our lifeline.) We were invited to BBQs and “socially distanced” outdoor gathering, but they were anything but socially distant. Once everyone got together all of the “rules” went out the window. Everyone was starving for normalcy, which only made it isolating and more dangerous for us.
We started declining all invitations to socialize, we lost trust in those that should be protecting us, we lost our village. I was every bit as heartbroken as he was.
I looked at him, my boy who is far to kind for this world, who’s heart is breaking wide open because he is seeing humanity at its worse, and I can‘t tell him it will get better.
But what I can do is hold him and promise this:
I will always be here to hold you when the world is spinning off of its axis.
I will always fight for your safety and protection.
I will always fight with you to make this world a better place.
I will always be a safe space for you, even when we are without the village.
