Today Anna and I took her sister and
husband out to eat for their 4th wedding anniversary. It
was a renown restaurant in these parts. We checked the website to see
if they were open and on the website the adjusted times were most
convenient for lunch. They boldly said the customers were to wear
masks until eating and remove them only for the meal after which they
were to put the masks back on. Worked for us and off we went. Reality
was a bit different and mostly it was servers in masks and us.
Everyone else were in the place without masks. We sat a comfortable
distance from everyone, the meal very good, and I went to pay out.
That is when I engaged(how shall I put this nicely) Mr Stupid. I
affirmed I could only imagine how difficult it was to operate a
restaurant at the lower capacity because of COVID-19. He said it was
and that this whole COVID thing was a sham. He cited his wife as his
greatest authority saying that “she said” people who came in for
testing who had had a flu shot the last three years would test
positive. I commented I had taken a flu short for the last 20 years
and tested a month ago for COVID and it was negative. He said it was
all nothing and there were no more deaths than the flu.(untrue
https://www.livescience.com/covid-19-deaths-vs-flu-deaths.html)
I mentioned not remembering a world wide economic shutdown—including
the USA--for an outbreak of the flu. He said it was all a sham, just
a rehearsal for the government declaring marshal law.
Generally, I don't engage people who
choose to disbelieve good science and good medical advice. But
somehow, it just slipped out. I have spent a lifetime listening to
people's fantasies, ignorant opinions, but somehow this time is very
different. The person who chooses to disbelieve the best information,
choosing instead to believe unfounded conspiracy theories, baseless
rumors, and bizarre ideas, can create a more dangerous place for
everyone else as we move through this time.
What we know is that COVID is killing
20 times more people per week than the worse week with the flu. We
know practically no one is immune and reports show children who have
contracted the virus and died, teens who have contracted the virus
and died, young men and women in early adulthood with no underlying
health issues have had horrible experiences with COVID. Nick Cordero
a 41 year old New York actor is fighting for his life, still has a
steep road ahead, and has lost a limb to blood clots from the virus.
While these stories are not daily occurrences what we do know is
youth or health does not automatically exempt us from COVID. It is
true that many will contact the virus and be asymptomatic that does
not exclude them from being carriers which can infect others if
everyone does not do their part.
Some have carelessly forgotten we all
share this good earth. The power to face, flatten, and defeat perhaps
one of the most potent viruses in our time requires us to love our
neighbor as ourselves. It requires us to take steps for the common
good. It requires us to be understanding and kind, and think about
how we would respond as someone who believes they are not “at risk”
if we were “the ones at risk” and would want others to respond.
It is the “do to others what you would have them do to you,”
truth of Scripture(Matthew 7:12).
One of the most troubling trends I see
in our time is a selfish vocal minority demanding to be able to do as
they please. “I have a right. . . .” “Don't deny me my right
to. . . .” “Who do you think you are to tell me what I can and
cannot do?” A nation such as ours can tear itself apart if we
forget to love our neighbor. For too long we have limited that
command to people like us, color like us, language like us, culture
like us. Jesus, though, agreed with the expert in the law who spoke
of the real neighbor as the one who showed mercy(Luke 10:25-37).
As we walk through these days, let us
walk through them together, encouraging each other, and showing mercy
to one another.
Wash your hands, wear your mask, mind
the gap, and be kind
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