An Open Letter to Grandparents: I Don’t Want you to Die
Dear Grandparents,
I don’t want you to die.
The other night, the President stated that he plans to re-open businesses and get the American economy going again. He said this despite calls from public health experts to continue with the current efforts to close all but non-essential services and practice social distancing as a country. The Lt. Governor of Texas backed the president’s statement by saying that “Lots of grandparents would be willing to die in order to save the economy for their grandchildren.” I want you to know, that I don’t want you to die. In fact, most Americans do not want you to die. Putting yourself in harm’s way is not going to save us.
This novel Coronovirus puts all of us at risk, but you are particularly vulnerable. While most people who will get the virus will have mild symptoms, you are more likely to have complications and are more likely to die when exposed. Most of us are acting as if we have the virus and staying away from people like yourselves who are most vulnerable. I am concerned about you because I grew up without grandparents and I have always felt that loss.
I lost my grandmother in the flu pandemic of 1918. She sacrificed her life as the virus spread throughout the world killing millions. And while she died some 50 years before I was…
