Every May, we celebrate Cystic Fibrosis Awareness month and pandemic or not, May 2020 will be no different! Last year, Lance, Crosby and I were honored to represent the CF community at the Arkansas Capitol where Senator Missy Irvin sponsored a resolution declaring May as Cystic Fibrosis Awareness month.
We encourage you to take the time this month to learn something you did not already know about CF or share what you do know about CF and your buddy Crosby with someone else.
As you have probably already guessed or heard, Great Strides is postponed due to COVID-19. The Arkansas Chapter of the CF Foundation has announced a new date for Little Rock Great Strides - October 3, 2020! Lance and I are choosing not to fundraise at this time, but please mark your calendars and plan to join us in October at the LR Zoo!
Lance and I have had so many wonderful and thoughtful people reach out to us since the start of the pandemic – checking in, thinking about us, praying, etc. I cannot say thank you enough! This is an incredibly scary time - for everyone. But for those who have recognized the additional impact this has on a family with Cystic Fibrosis – thank you for seeing us and letting us know you have thought about us. It has meant so much.
We have been asked (a lot) if we’re scared of the coronavirus. But the truth is, we have lived with the threat since Crosby was diagnosed with CF. Of course, the threat hasn’t always been COVID-19, but for the past 6.5 years we’ve had to take the same precautions that everyone else has just started taking the past 8 weeks. We wash our hands constantly, disinfect everything, social distance, avoid crowds, cancel trips and activities, and weigh every decision on what the impact could mean for Crosby’s health. When lock downs across the country first began, Lance and I both said how a lot of this reminds us of Crosby’s first year and how hard we worked to keep him isolated and give his lungs a chance to grow without being impacted by infection.
So, have we been scared? Maybe a little. But that’s the life we live everyday having a child with CF. So many unknowns, so many rules and restrictions. Staying home when we want to go out, not having friends over, saying no when the tears in Crosby’s eyes are begging me to say yes. We have to approach every decision by thinking, are we doing the best that we can do? I don’t want something to happen and look back, regret a decision and then have to say, well I could’ve done better. When given the choice to follow the rules or potentially lose my Crosby, there really is no choice.
I know we are all ready to get back to a more normal way of living. But as we start to go back to places and activities, please remember we need to still protect not only ourselves and families, but we also need to protect those most vulnerable. It may not mean much for you to get a virus, the flu or even a cold, but it could mean hospitalization, serious complications or even death for others.
Please continue to take the time to wash your hands A LOT. Please stay home if you aren't feeling well and keep your kids home when they aren't well. And please please PLEASE wear a mask when you go out in public. Not because you are required to, but because of your love for your neighbor – the kind of love that God calls us to have for one another. Your mask protects others. Wearing a mask is simply just being considerate. No one is asking you to live this life forever. Please do the right thing. Remember, when this pandemic is over, social distancing and masks will still be the norm for some people:
