What To Do With The Time That Is Given To Us

My son and I have been slowly making our way through The Lord of the Rings trilogy (yes, we are those parents who make their kids read the books before seeing the movies).

Set in (the fictional) Middle-Earth, the Lord of the Rings is the Dark Lord, Sauron, who long ago lost his one ring to rule them all. He is seeking to reclaim the ring and enslave all of Middle-Earth. The three books (and movies) follow Frodo Baggins, a hobbit, and his fellowship/gang of three other hobbits, an elf, a dwarf, two men, and a wizard as they seek to destroy the ring in the fires of Mount Doom.

As Frodo sets out on his journey to destroy the ring, he has the following conversation with Gandalf the wizard —

“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo.

“So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.”

Throughout the pandemic, I have found myself saying similar things — I wish the pandemic had not happened in my lifetime or I wish the virus had not spread or I wish the endless work to reduce disease spread was not mine. I share Frodo’s exhaustion and frustration as well as the weight of the world on his shoulders. I have felt that weight for the past two years.

But Gandalf’s words are so important. Not just to Frodo, but to us all right now —

None of us wanted this pandemic, and we all wish that it did not happen during our lifetime. But that was not for us to decide — we didn’t bring the pandemic about nor can we ignore it, wish it away, or control it.

Instead, we must decide what to do with the time given to us.

As case counts, hospitalizations, and deaths from COVID continue to decrease, we must each decide what to do at this given time. For me, I want to continue to work to slow the spread of disease because ~2000 deaths per day from COVID in the United States is too many. These deaths can be prevented with a vaccine. And our kids ages 0-4 do not have access to a vaccine yet. Steps must be taken by all of us (not just those who have little kids) to slow the spread of disease and protect them from infection.

So I am committed to using the time that has been given to me to —

1. Advocate for vaccines.
   Physicians and public health officials have advocating for vaccines for more than a year. The vaccine prevent people from experiencing severe symptoms and requiring hospitalization. The Chief Medical Officer at the community hospital in my hometown said this a few months ago when cases were increasing —
   

   "There's been a significant uptick in COVID admissions at the hospital lately. A lot of them (more than 80%) are unvaccinated patients — that's why we're really pushing the vaccine in order to help those folks from not getting so ill that they require a visit to the hospital."
   
   As the number of deaths in the US gets closer to 1 million, there has never been a better time than right now to get everyone vaccinated. COVID is a vaccine-preventable disease.
   

2. Advocating for increased curiosity, understanding, and kindness.
   The gulf that divides individuals who have declared the pandemic over/who just don’t give a crap and individuals who are still deathly afraid of COVID spread and infection has become quite large.

   

   
   As we look to a future where COVID is endemic (you can learn more about what I mean by watching this), we need to bridge this gulf or come closer together in the middle.
   
   I would ask that individuals on the left, who do not worry or care about COVID, could you please imagine what this pandemic has been like for a parent with a sick kid who cannot get vaccinated? Can you imagine what their lives have been like for the past two years as they have done everything possible to shield their sick child from an infectious disease that could kill them? If this were my family, what could you do for me? Could you put on your mask when you see me in the office? could you ask me how I am doing and how navigating doctor’s visits during the pandemic is going? At the very least, could you not make fun of me for wearing my N95 mask each and every day? Could you not go on and on on Facebook at how masking is pointless or isn’t needed? Could you not tell me I am bad parent because of the choices my family is making? Could you think of an act of kindness — bringing me a coffee to work, having a pizza delivered to our house on Friday, stopping by with a muffin on Monday morning — that you could share with me?
   
   And for those on the other side of the gulf, it is not March of 2020 any more. We have vaccines and N95 masks to prevent disease. We have treatments available to help the immune system to fight an infection. And we know that increased airflow, gathering outdoors, and having a small pod/quaranTEAM of people decrease disease spread. If you are on the right side of the gulf (pictured above) and paralyzed by fear, can you believe in your vaccine? Can you trust the science that it will keep you from developing severe disease if you are diagnosed? And can you take one step toward the middle? Maybe you get together with friends without masks for an intimate dinner after everyone tests negative using your home tests. Or maybe you go to see the ballet this weekend; you can wear your mask and sit away from others, but get out and enjoy the performance. For me, I am supporting my daughter as she performs on stage without a mask this week. I am reminding her that her vaccine will protect her from severe infection and that case counts are low in our community. I am reminding her that seeing her face for the first time in years on the stage brings me true joy.
   
   Can we agree to take a small step forward? This step brings us one step closer to living in harmony with both the SARS-CoV-2 virus and each other.
   

3. Putting the PUBLIC back into health.
   For decades now, we’ve been told that being healthy is an individual responsibility — eat well, exercise, don’t drink too much alcohol, don’t smoke, have safe sex, don’t do drugs. And while these are all healthy practices, health can only be achieved/maintained when we are all healthy. We need to see health in all policies, places, and people.
   
   Being healthy needs to be synonomous with public health.
   
   Next week I will be releasing an Introduction to Epidemiology (the science of public health) class on Teachable for all of you. It is free course to help you get your bearings and redefine what it means to define health as public health.
   

   

   This course is for everyone — students, parents, teachers, community organizers, local leaders, physicians. All are welcome!

   To learn more (and to be the first to know that the course is available online) —
   

These are the three things I am doing with the time that is given to me. What will you do with the time that is given to you?

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Two important things to note —

First, a war has started in Ukraine. Please seek out valid and reliable sources of information about what is happening and do NOT spread misinformation. I would encourage you to explore the resources and information available at New Eastern Europe. The editor-and-chief is a friend of mine (we worked for years together in Washinton DC years ago). New Eastern Europe is working with non-profits and local organizations in Ukraine to provide accurate information and support for individuals affected by the Russian attack.

Second, the global health community is mourning the loss of one of our leaders, Dr. Paul Farmer, who passed away unexpectedly this week. If you don’t know of him, I encourage you to check out his organization Partners in Health and to read the book Mountains Beyond Mountains. As I remember Dr. Farmer today, I am reminded of this quote he left for all of us —

“With rare exceptions, all of your most important achievements on this planet will come from working with others—or, in a word, partnership.”

Let us work together. As partners. To create healthy communities.