The contentious presidential election. The rushed Supreme Court nomination hearings. A severely damaged economy with millions out of work and facing eviction.
These are all good reasons why we don’t pause for just a moment to memorialize those who have been taken from us too soon in our fight against the pandemic.
Life is exhausting these days and we wonder when we can ever feel safe again. Thousands are dying from COVID-19 every week in our nation and we feel helpless in not being able to pay our last respects.
But there is something, however modest, we CAN do. The gesture is simple, yet profound, to honor the lives of friends, neighbors, relatives and coworkers.
Along a quiet street In Detroit, large posters displayed the portraits of 900 of the city’s sons and daughters lost to COVID-19. Funeral processions were conducted to give mourners the opportunity to honor them as they drove solemnly by. (Click here for video, dated August 30, 2020: https://bit.ly/3o1WgOX)
Every community in the country should stop their busy lives, even for a solitary afternoon, and follow Detroit’s lead. No, it’s not the only thing we can do to mourn a tragedy that has rocked this nation.
But it’s a good, and respectful, start.
© Ron Cooper 2020
See Ron’s earlier post: “When will we mourn,” May 19, 2020.
Ron Cooper 