Who Are Our Essential Workers?

I would just like to say thank you to all our essential workers including those I may have forgotten to mention. Your work does not go unnoticed and we appreciate all you do for us--especially during these unprecedented times.

Doctors

While we all stay home to hide from the virus, our doctors go out to fight for us

They don’t fight with weapons but with love

They mend the sick to help make them strong again

They comfort our loved ones when we cannot make it to their side

They try everything they can to keep us all alive.

Nurses

The men and women who check on you when you feel both well and unwell

They care for us the same way a parent takes care of their child--with patience and love.

But who checks on them?

They haven’t slept for days but we don’t hear them complain

They didn’t have enough to protect themselves but still, day and night they fight for us.

Custodians and Cleaning Crews

To those who keep our world clean

When we needed you most you did not turn your backs,

You went to work scrubbing our hospitals, our transportation, our workplaces, our stores and so much more

Without you, we would have no chance in fighting this virus

You risk your lives every day to protect us.

Postal Workers

We can no longer visit our loved ones so these workers carry our love for us all the way to their doors

Without them, we wouldn’t be able to order our impulse buys that somehow help us get through.

They bring us letters and packages from all over the world, reminding us that the world keeps going--

We no longer feel so alone because they work so hard to connect us together.

Electricians

They bring our cities to life

When the darkness seems to overcome, they lift away the shadows

As a child, I used to fear the dark because I was afraid of the unknown

Nowadays there are so many unknowns,

But these workers came to take away the empty darkness so we do not have to be afraid anymore.

Restaurant Workers

In uncharted territory, it is nice to have a bit of familiarity

Restaurants bring so many good memories to mind

So much laughter and joy and celebration

For those that had to shut down, we see you and mourn your loss with you

And for those who were able to remain open we thank you for giving us a taste of familiarity.

Construction Workers

While our cities went to sleep, you did not

You continued to grow our towers almost tall enough to reach the stars--

Our bridge that was broken we did not know how to cross, until you came and fixed it

You showed us what had to be done in order for us to keep pushing forward

Onto higher dreams, higher than your skyscrapers.

Waste Collectors

Although the world seems to have shut down, our trash cans did not stop overflowing

To make our world clean for us, they came to take away the garbage and recyclables we leave behind

They had to keep working in order for our homes and parks to not smell so bad

To make staying at home bearable,

Or perhaps, so we don’t slip on an old banana peel.

Manufactures

They make sure we have everything we need

Whether it is more hand sanitizer, masks, or toilet paper

These workers are like Santa’s elves making sure all the children of the world are happy

We have whatever we need at our fingertips because of their sacrifice

Our treasures don’t come from thin air, they come from their hands.

Warehouse Workers

You load and unload all our goods for us

Each box treated well enough to make it to its unique destination

Making sure to count carefully so that we all get enough of what we need

You work together to plan and keep us equipped

And when we are about to run out--you warn us.

Scientists

They show us how to not be afraid by simplifying the virus into code

Teaching us all about how soap works to break down the virus

And how staying at home really does help

They knew a day like this would come so they try to prepare us

Where we have questions they have answers.

Gas Station Workers and Mechanics

We didn’t run out of fuel because you made sure to have a place for it

When we stop here we know we will be taken care of

And so will our cars so they are free to keep running around

Even though the streets looked empty, you still stayed open for those who had to drive

Helping your fellow essential workers to keep ongoing.

Pharmacy Workers

They give us our medicine and teach us how to use it

We may not have a drug that helps weaken this virus yet, but our pharmacists won’t rest until they create one

In the meantime, they make sure we have all our other medications to keep us healthy and strong

They make sure our bodies are the best-equipped they can be to help us fight.

Lab Workers

Our lab workers process our tests as we wait for the dreaded results…

They help us know how oxygenated our blood is

And how many white blood cell warriors we have coursing through us, ready to save the day

They keep our communities safe by tracking the virus

They work behind the scenes but still remain on the front lines.

Public Transport Drivers

They are important essential workers themselves, but they also carry other important essential workers to their jobs

When it is too early or too dark or too far they take us to our destination with ease

They risk their lives for us every day so that we can make it to work on time

Without them, we wouldn’t know our way around our cities so easily,

And definitely, not as quickly.

Landscapers

Even when those we knew started to get sick, we started to worry about our grass growing up

Who will keep our world beautiful and our plants in line?

They did not have the choice to stop working because we depended on them to keep things looking right

They continued to trim and cut and mend the earth’s hair

So that we had a nice view from inside.

Teachers and Professors

They teach us our love for learning

And when the world all ran inside--they turned on their computers and learned new ways for us in order for us to continue on our path of education

Instead of being angry when we turned in our homework late, they understood what each student needed

They showed us what it meant to look out for one another during these times.

First Responders

The sound that carries you all the way to the hospital

The sound you hear from your home as you stay inside but worry about the neighbor who needs the ride

As we hear the sound more and more we remember it is more than just a sound

There are brave men and women behind the noise

The sound is scary at first until we see their comforting faces assuring us that we will be okay.

Grocery Workers

We find all the parts to our favorite meals here at this shop

But someone first came to place them softly for us to find

They show us where to go when we can not find an item on mom’s list

Without them, we would be hungry

But even when their shelves were getting empty, they never turned us away.

Agricultural Workers

They take care of us to make sure our bellies are full by providing our grocery stores with all the food we could ever dream of tasting.

They plant seeds deep into the ground and watch over them as they grow

They watch over the livestock as they grow up to be packages of meat

They pour milk from the cows like fountains to make sure we enjoy our chocolate chip cookies,

And collect the eggs we need to bake those cookies.

Delivery Drivers

They deliver us all the goods we need so we never run out

Their job is to keep things coming, so they drive long hours back and forth

They miss their homes but they keep going--for us

Knowing we need all the help we can get, they persistently deliver us the supplies we need to keep on fighting.

Phone and Internet Companies

When everyone went online they were ready to help us

Without the internet, we would never have been able to survive these times like we have

In order to continue our schools and jobs, we relied on these companies

They made sure we had what we needed to stay inside.

Cyber-security

A new way to protect the people

To protect our information when we all moved into our computers

We did not know what to expect when all our businesses joined online, but you kept us safe.

You make sure the information we hear online is true

And you work hard to keep it that way.

911 Call Centers

Those who answer our 9-1-1 calls

Three numbers that are forever graphed into our brains --

But we would never get the help we need without someone on the other end.

Now, more than ever, we call these centers who are dedicated to sending us the care we need

They pick up to reassure us “help is on the way.”

Hospital Personnel

You all help keep the hospitals running

Without your organization, our doctors would not know where to start

You all work together, hand in hand, with one goal in mind

You do not think of yourself but of the world

What would we ever do without you?

Military

To all our soldiers who are trained to fight for us who now learned to fight in a new way

Those at land and those at sea made no exception to this virus,

It knows no borders and no uniform is safe.

But they continued to help the people by making test centers for us to know if we are sick

And they even built us new hospitals when we ran out.

News Reporters

When we all went searching for answers they told us the truth

They kept us updated on the regulations that seemed to change day-by-day

As we started to watch and read the news more and more we started to get familiar with these faces

We learned not only the bad news of all the deaths but also the good news they reported,

The news of the humanity we still share, of the love and the care and the essential workers who continue on for us.

Mental Health Workers

When the world feels like too much weight on our backs they come to lift away our pain

When we feel lonely because we haven’t gone out in so long they remind us we aren’t alone

When we feel lazy because we haven’t been doing anything in months they tell us we are trying our best

They show us it’s okay to be lonely and scared right now and instead of letting us sit and suffer, they teach us how to deal with the pain.

Care-Givers

Helping our most vulnerable at a facility or in their homes

Showing love like our own to our parents and grandparents and great grandparents

You tell them not to be afraid, when you are afraid yourself

And when they forget who you are you comfort them anyways

You see that the value of human life does not run out when we get older.

Funeral Home and Cemetery Workers

And if the time comes to say goodbye, we leave our loved ones in no better hands than theirs

They care for our dead and send them off with honor--

Our wishes are respected and carried out.

And while we turn to mourn, they work on making our loved ones a comfortable resting place

They help us to remember and carry our loved ones deep within our hearts.