The Heart of America

Somedays I wake up and think we are living in a movie with all that is happening in the world. There area almost 300,000 deaths in the world to date, and every day more people get sick and die. With over 4 million people sick in the world. In my family alone we have over 20 front line workers. Each Tuesday my uncle has created a call for the family to get on and check in on each other. It is a time when you don't know if the person you love most will live though the next day.

I have several family members that are Doctors and on the front line in this fight. Eli Borup is a military doctor and is in Florida working on the front lines. Another cousin who is working directly in infectious disease is my Cousin's husband. My cousin Derek Marlor is also working in his residency on the font lines. So many people putting their lives on the line for others.

In the news we hear daily of Doctors who have contracted the virus at work then later die from this virus. These stories make me cry each night knowing the sacrifice they have made.

Some of these nurses and doctors are my family, and they are going into work with limited protection. The first I will talk about is my niece. She is like a daughter to me. She is pregnant and going into work with people that could have Covid 19. The office does not have enough protection for the people. She draws blood for people so she has a more active roll and the greatest fear is for her unborn child.

Another one of my nieces and very close to me is Kia. She works at the hospital doing blood draws and she has to be tested every day in order to work. The chance of her getting sick is greater just like Alyssa.

I am grateful to all the grocery workers, and truckdrivers who are putting their lives on the line as well. My best friend's husband drives truck and is worries every day about him, but knows that he plays a vital role in making sure the world still rotates.

Another person that is on the front line in a different way is my brother in law who delivers packages in Spain. He does not have much protection when he goes around delivering packages, and there was a time last week that he thought he might have Covid. We were lucky that he did not have the virus.

The last person I will introduce you to is my husband. He is an Electrician and does Lightning Protection. This means that if there is a storm he has made it so all of the computers and data bases in the big c0orperations and hospitals are safe. Each day he goes out he can bring it home to me and my little ones. We have a four year old and an 9 month old. I am a high risk individual with Asthma and other things. Every day I think is this the day I will have to say goodbye to my children because it has been brought home to me. The other day both of us started to have symptoms of the virus. We were told to monitor ourselves. I was able to get tested, but when I woke up the next morning everything was gone. I was so grateful.

I pray that all workers, Doctors, and people stay safe. Wash your hands, stay inside as much as you can, and know that this is just temporary. It will end and we will be able to live without fear again. So thank you to the world. Though who have sacrificed their lives for us and those who are continually working to keep us safe and alive.