‘My Husband is Not a Statistic’

Editor,

We are nearing 100,000 deaths from the coronavirus, more than died in Vietnam and the Korean War, twice as many as those who died in WWI, and the equivalent of 22 Iraqi wars, 41 Afghanistan wars, 33 September 11ths.  

  My husband is one of those 100,000.  He died from the coronavirus on Apr. 25.

   The number of deaths from the virus never had to reach this level. If President Trump and this administration had started social distancing just two weeks earlier instead of downplaying the severity of the virus, it might have prevented 84% of the deaths and 82% of the cases, according to researchers at Colombia University. 

  Perhaps my husband could have been one of those who didn’t contract the virus. 

  If we had a president who believed in science, who listened to health experts, who had a conscience and a heart, perhaps my husband would be enjoying looking at the extraordinary wildflower garden he has been tending and sharing plants from for over 30 years. Perhaps he would be helping me plant the vegetable garden.  Perhaps he would be sitting next to me at breakfast and lunch and dinner.  

My husband is not a statistic.  He was my children’s father, my grandchildren’s zeydeh, a good friend, a volunteer, a sweet good person.  

Think about that when you decide whom to vote for in November.  Who you vote for really matters. 

 PAULA SPECTOR