My Thoughts and Prayers
Two headlines hit over the past day.
Donald and Melania Trump have both tested positive for COVID-19. And so have 19,000 Amazon employees since the outbreak began.
I pray that no one gets COVID-19. Illogical, I know, but if we do the things that we’re told — washing our hands, keeping socially distant, being smart about when and why we go out, and wearing masks — we can do better than we’re doing. I pray that we heed these warnings and get a better handle on this, sooner than later.
Because Donald Trump lies about so many things, it’s natural to wonder whether this isn’t another Hollywood production playing out in real time. My gut tells me that this man wants a full calendar of mask-optional rallies and to break more debate rules, not to be tweeting in quarantine (with Melania), so he has it. My gut also tells me that if he’s lucky enough to make it through relatively okay, he will downplay the virus (“see, look at me, it’s not bad at all. I’ve had worse sniffles”), which will be a slap in the face to the 207,000 families that have lost someone to COVID-19, and the many others who’ve had prayer-filled nights hoping that they will see another morning, or are still dealing with uncertain and excruciating effects, weeks and months after first being diagnosed. The numbers show that Black, Latinx, and Native American communities are being disproportionately hit harder, a product of many not-so-great and not-so-new American factors.
COVID-19 doesn’t care who you are — world leader / entertainment star, teacher, student, frontline delivery or food services worker, or anyone else in its path. It just wants to do what it does, and for far too many people, that damage is debilitating and potentially fatal. I pray that we remember that, and that we commit to working together, as a unified nation, to prioritize our collective wellness. I pray that we keep that top of mind as we cast our ballots, and we not be led astray (again), nor be too apathetic to show up and do our part.
PS. Trump is no Tupac. People can’t tweet after faking their death, and I really don’t imagine a world with a living, breathing Donald J. Trump not working his Twitter fingers out hourly. Cool script though, but your man ain’t built for that.
