Will? Won’t? Did? Didn’t? Have? Haven’t? Why? Why not? 2021 and the Vaccine Questions

Throughout history, people have been marked by society, both truthfully and fictionally. In Genesis 4:15 we are told that after Cain killed his brother Abel, “Then the Lord set a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him.”  Scholars differ on what that mark may have been, and I’m not educated enough to wager a guess.  Samuel Hawthorne wrote”The Scarlet Letter” in 1850, describing a Puritan woman forced to wear a scarlet “A” as a permanent reminder of her having committed adultery.  In Nazi-occupied Europe, Jews were forced to wear a yellow star, mocking the Star of David, and making it easier to humiliate them, as well as to aid in finding them for deportation.  And, then there is Revelation 13:16-17, speaking of the “mark of the beast,”. “The beast forced all the people, small and great, rich and poor, slave and free, to have a mark placed on their right hands or on their foreheads. No one could buy or sell without this mark...” And again, I don’t want to get into a discussion of Revelation here, as I will be the first to admit I am not knowledgeable enough to do that.

But I have begun to wonder in recent days if that little card people are getting is becoming a mark, or rather those who don’t have the card are being “marked.”  And if you haven’t been on Facebook or seen the news or in general have avoided all public discussions of the Coronavirus vaccine (where have you been??), these little cards indicate that someone has had one, or both, or the only inoculation  necessary to mark them “safe.”  

In almost every situation in which I have found myself recently, whether with long-time friends, casual acquaintances, or even random phone conversations regarding a totally different topic (except the ones saying that my car warranty has expired!), the subject has come up. “Have you gotten your vaccine?” “Are you registered?” “Are you going to get it?” “Did you know you don’t have to be in the right “group” to get it if you go to XYZ pharmacy or drive to ABC town?” The list goes is endless, as everyone has a story.

As days have gone on, I find myself thinking more frequently that my health decisions are my own, and private — you’ve heard of HIPAA, I’m sure).  I don’t have to answer any of these questions, except perhaps with my close family members or medical providers.   For the record, yes, I have registered, but because of my age, I’m in one of the last groups to be called.  I’ve actually had people ask, “Well, you have underlying medical conditions, don’t you??” Um, I really don’t want to discuss my medical history and especially not my BMI with you! Why is that suddenly OK??

Will we get to the point that we chose our friends based on whether or not they are “card-carrying?” Will we take them at their word that they are, or will we want to actually SEE their card? Will places of business and workplaces and even churches decide they are open for card-carriers only? Might we only be able to buy and sell if we have “the mark,” the card?  Is this a violation of of health privacy?

As of today, I’m no longer answering the “vaccine questions”— again unless you’re a close family member or a medical professional.  Not to be rude, but it’s really no one's business except mine.  And when I get called, and decide to go to be vaccinated, I won’t be posting it on Facebook.  (Not criticizing all my Facebook friends who have; it’s just that I won’t.)

The last year has been frightening as we’ve navigated waters that most of our generations have never experienced, although polio and smallpox may have been as bad or worse.  The fears are real, and it’s been long and tiring.  Personally, we’ve lost two family members during the last 10 months, one to COVID, so I’m not oblivious to the reality of this virus.  My fear is that the worst is yet to come, as we start to “mark” the haves and the have nots.  May we all be healthy, safe, protected — and respectful.  

Girls! Girls! Girls!

Boys.  We raised boys.  I know all about boys.  I know blocks, Legos, the names of ALL construction vehicles, the different levels of Little League and their ages, that boys wear multiple layers of clothes at all times, that they will wear almost any color dress pants as long as they are khaki or navy.  I know the difference between the American League and the Natuonal League, what inter-league play is, When the All-Star game is played, and have toured quite a few MLB stadiums.  I know what middle school boys smell like (it's not good), and that having deodorant and USING deodorant are two very different things.  I know that more dirt often comes off on the hand towel than goes down the drain.  And I know that little boys love their moms with a special kind of love, that I wouldn't trade for anything.

When we were expecting our first child, we didn't want to know the gender ahead of time, and we said we didn't care whether it was a boy or a girl, but I think we were both really excited that it was a boy-----and our choice of a girl name was awful, so I was especially relieved!  Six years later, big brother was adamant that he was having a baby brother, and we tried to find out the gender ahead of time, but to no avail.  When the doctor announced in the delivery room, "It's a boy!", I breathed a sigh of relief.  I could do this, I knew about boys.

I knew NOTHING about raising little girls. I'm not a girly-girl by any means, very low maintenance, not into makeup or manicures or shoes or shopping or dance or gymnastics.  I would have struggled raising girls, I'm sure.  When I was pregnant, I had maternity dresses that had ties on the sides, and Brian and I struggled figuring out how to tie the bows so that they weren't lopsided.  We taught 3-year-olds in Sunday School for years, and if a little girl came to us with her hair clip or bow in hand, we just had to say, "Put that in your cubby until your parents come back."  We sure didn't know how to get it back in her hair!

Fast forward 30+ years, and we've been blessed to add two daughters to our family, by way of our sons finding and marrying wonderful women. I’m so thankful for the Godly parents who raised these girls, and that they and our sons found each other.  They are building strong homes and families, and we are so proud of them.

Nine years ago this week we were awaiting the birth of our first grandchild - a granddaughter, no less!  To say we were excited would be an understatement, at the very least.  I had made her more hair bows than any one child could ever wear (I ended up donating a lot of them, because I had gone just a wee bit overboard.). I taught myself to smock, and made her a couple of things. We developed an eye for all things girl - clothes, dolls, pink Legos (PINK Legos???), ruffles, cute little hats, and those precious tiny baby shoes - and suddenly we were grandparents of a beautiful little girl who stole our hearts.  We dropped everything to babysit, we started the annual “Christmas Craft Sleepover at Pa and Granna’s,” Date Nights at the beach - we couldn’t imagine it getting any better.

But, as happens, she grew, she learned to walk, and to talk, and to say “Pa” and “Granna,” and every stage was better and better.  We collected pictures on our phones, stories on the tip of our tongues, and we could compete with any other grandparent who thought they had the world’s most amazing grandchild!

Almost three years later, sweet little girl had a baby sister, so we had another granddaughter! We got to have double the fun — learning new things as the older one grew, and reliving memories as the younger one became her own sweet little person.  Christmas Craft sleepovers were double the fun, we had “formal dinners,” complete with pearls (except Pa!), and we put on our best wedding attire when Prince Harry and Princess Meghan got married. We were really getting the hang of this girl stuff!  We go to softball games, and basketball, and gymnastics, and school programs - and we want everyone to know they are “ours”.

And now we’re exactly where we were 9 years ago this week - awaiting the birth of another grandchild, granddaughter #3! A completely new dynamic has been added as the first two can’t wait to have a first cousin. We can’t wait to meet this new little one and begin including her in the existing traditions, while adding new ones we haven’t even thought of yet.  It will be so much fun watching the older two with her - at 6 and 9 they are at great ages to interact with her, unlike their daddy who at 4 carried his first cousin across a room upside-down!

Someday, we just may have a boy in this mix of girls, and you know what? That would be great, too, and I’m sure trucks, and baseball cars, and mud would all come back to us instantly.  Grandchildren are a blessing, no matter the gender.

But for now, when is that granddaughter going to make her appearance? Granna’s arms are ready to hold her, and tell her about all the adventures we’re going to have!