Three weeks ago, I posted an article alerting readers to the fact that I had come down with Covid-19 and would be out of action for the foreseeable future. As it turned out, my entire family was hit with the virus.
Our experience was not unlike that of hundreds of families across the nation …
Covid bounced off of our younger children almost completely, while our older kids experienced only mild symptoms and our teenager had what amounted to flu-like symptoms for approximately a week.
As for myself, I didn’t get nearly as sick as I did the last time I had it … but once again it was like a really bad case of the flu and it did seem to linger longer than it did a year ago. Ultimately, I ended up being sick for about five days … during which time our news director Mandy Matney stepped up in a big way on this site.
Anyway, the real concern in our household when it came to Covid was always my wife – who in addition to being immunocompromised happened to be eight-and-a-half months pregnant with our seventh child at the time the virus hit our home. Unfortunately, her case of Covid-19 was much more severe than the rest of ours – sidelining her for more than two weeks.
Two days after her symptoms finally began to relent – and one day after I was officially cleared from Covid quarantine – Mrs. Folks went into labor.
I have seen many displays of fortitude in my time – including watching my wife give birth multiple times without the benefit of pain medications. But something about this delivery was truly special. Drained by the virus, she had almost nothing left to give – yet somehow she summoned the will to bring a child into the world (once again, without meds) in what was a very long, very difficult labor.
I’ve never been prouder – or more in awe – of anyone in my life.
The end result of her efforts? Matthias Hall Folks … our seventh child.
Here is a look at “Matty …”
(Click to view)
(Via: Will Folks)
I am happy to report that mother, baby and the rest of our family (including Matty’s very excited six siblings) are all doing well now.
Parents and children are all feeling much better, everyone has cleared their Covid-19 quarantine dates and – with the help of a very dedicated grandmother – we are trying to settle into some semblance of a “new normal.”
Also, as happens every time my wife has a new baby, I am experiencing a renewed appreciation for those who take on the daily tasks of a stay-at-home parent – cooking, cleaning, washing dishes, doing laundry, managing chores, transporting children – tasks at which I am failing miserably.
But, I am trying …
I won’t waste much more of your time on this personal update, but there is something else I would like to say: Thank you.
During these chaotic last few weeks, my family has been on the receiving end of innumerable kindnesses … prayers, gifts, meals, etc. Whenever we felt hopeless, people were there to give us hope … even if it was just a three-word “thinking of you” text message. It has truly been an outpouring of support, and on behalf of my wife and our children, we are extremely and eternally grateful for it.
There is a lot wrong with our world. With our state. With our communities. And yes, with ourselves. And part of my job involves exposing those wrongs and seeking to right them as best I know how. But one thing that will always be right with our world is the individual kindness we show one other when we face trying times. And another thing that will always be right with the world is the joy that spreads among us when we share each other’s good news – especially the celebration of a new life.
Finally, thanks so much to all of our readers (and especially our subscribers) for their patience over the last few weeks. As I noted in the Covid post earlier this month, it pained me not to be able to crank out the amount of content I am accustomed to producing on a daily basis – but I am confident my output will continue to rise in the days and weeks to come.
Take care,
ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
(Via: FITSNews)
Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading.
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