Covid-19.
I am sure you are tired of hearing about it.
But, honestly, I cannot turn it off.
Why?
Because my life and my family’s life are at risk because of it.
Even though the cases are down here in the state that I am in, I can still see the possibilities of the future:
A second wave.
People from the south coming north for the summer and starting the spread all over again.
While our state is opening back up and my friends are all out at the bars and restaurants again and having parties,
I am choosing to stay home.
I am choosing to continue to isolate my children and me.
I am choosing to stock up on necessities incase it hits with force again while supplies are back on the shelves.
One of the absolute hardest decisions I have ever made in my lifetime and I am making it right now.
What makes it so challenging is that my sister lives right next door with her daughter who is the same age as my 3 year old son.
They play together all of the time, but last week, her daughter went back to daycare and I see the potential risks in that.
More exposure.
I do not know where the children at her daycare or their parents have been and they are in contact with her and then she would come in contact with my son.
I have ultimately decided that my son is to no longer play with her anymore.
And that, my friends, has been THE hardest decision I have ever made in my lifetime.
To tell my sister that her daughter and my son can no longer play together simply because she is back at daycare.
I feel horrible about even having to have had to consider such a decision!
Who would ever think that we would be living through such a time where decisions like this would have to be made?
Everyone around me argues that the risk is low now and that chances are slim that we would catch it just by them playing, especially if they play outside.
But here is my point: This virus is deadly and it does not care if you are family.
It does not care that that is your sister’s child nor if your 3-year-old son wants to go out and play.
It doesn’t care.
And that is why we should care more.
Be more cautious.
Not just jump back into the saddle and pick up where we left off with our lives a few months before!
I hate this.
I hate that we are even in such a position.
But if staying away from my family means keeping everyone safer from an unseen enemy for a period of time, then so be it.
Yes, I love my family THAT much to say, let’s just stay away for now.
I would be devastated if I was ever the cause for one of my family/friends to become ill from the virus.
And I love my children enough to want to protect them in every way that I can.
Even if it means sacrificing my desires to go out with friends, to host game nights or to go into public spaces.
For now.
What does that mean?
I do not care if it is for a few more months or a couple more years (praying not longer than that!).
I am going to do everything that I can to make certain that we stay home and safe until this virus is contained.
I hate telling my sister that Ryan cannot come out to play with her daughter.
That we will no longer even sit in the garage anymore to share dinners.
That we have to visit with friends and other family members outside on the driveway and at a definite 6ft distance when everyone else is starting to go into one another’s homes.
And, if you happen to be one of those who believe that this virus is a hoax, then I respect your belief.
Believe it or not, I actually thought that it was being overplayed in the beginning, as well.
However, I have been watching this too closely and listening to all of the experts and hearing stories of friends of mine who have witnessed this first hand in the hospital settings to believe otherwise.
Dear Lord, the horror stories that I have heard!
The tears from my friends who would call after they personally witnessed such chaos and tragedy.
That is how I knew that this was no hoax.
What was happening was real.
And let me tell you….
Even if there was a chance of something so drastic taking so many lives, I do not understand how some people can just say, “Well, if it gets me, then it gets me.”
That is like walking right onto enemy lines and saying, “If I get shot, then I get shot, but I am going over to that bar to get a beer.”
I do not understand that…
Anyways,
Tough choices.
Such differences in beliefs today.
It is a challenging world that we are facing.
What I want to say to you is this….
You have to do what you feel is best for you and your family.
Do not let friends pressure you into going out just because restaurants and bars are open.
Do not let anyone make you feel like a fool because you have a genuine concern over this virus or anything else out there that could be a threat to you or your children.
Everyone else does what they want to do!
What they feel is best for them!
You need to do the same.
Hardest decision, my friends.
But I know that I am doing it to protect us during this time.
Even if this supposedly is a hoax, as many people have claimed,
Better to be safe than sorry in just about ANY situation.
My son may look back a few years from now and say, “Mom, you were so mean to not let me play with my cousin and my friends.”
But I don’t care.
I am doing what I am doing to keep him, us and the people we love safe.
Sometimes, the hardest decisions you ever have to face become the best ones you ever had to make.
I pray that this choice that I am making right now, no matter how many people’s feelings it may hurt, will prove to be the best, most safest choice that I have been given.
And I pray that God helps you to make the best choice for you and your family and to not let other people’s perceptions influence your decision in a way that makes you uncomfortable.
Doing what is best is not always what other people want or think that you should do. 
Good luck, my friend.
You got this!
Blessings to you!