By Rev. Nina D. Grey
November, 2004
I went for my regular check-up and my primary care doctor asked, "Did you find a flu shot?"
"No," I said, "I know I'm not 65 but I thought perhaps I should get one because I spend so much time with older folks in my work.”
"We don't have any," she said. Then she spoke about how angry she is, because a number of younger folks in corporate America have gotten flu shots while folks in nursing homes and retirement communities are being left out. "They don't realize that the flu can be life threatening for older people. They haven't lived through a flu epidemic," she concluded.
I feel angry too, at the government decisions that led to the shortage. If there is any example that the personal is political, and vice versa, this is it. But examples abound, from decisions made about stem cell research, to limitations on reproductive choice, to regulations that discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation, to policies taking support from public schools, to decisions that promote racism in the judicial system, to U.S. military actions that unnecessarily disrupt and destroy the lives of young men and their families. The list is endless.
By the time you read this column, the election will probably be over, and maybe we will even know some or the entire outcome. The results may lead you to celebrate or to grieve. You may feel deeply encouraged or discouraged. But once the intensity is past, this remains true: Whatever we decide as a nation on November 2, our vision and the work continues and must not be neglected - to persevere in the struggle for justice, to add our passion and our voices for the sake of every person of every age, one day at a time.
In this season of Thanksgiving, take time to be with your family and friends, and time to be aware of how you and they are doing. When there is not flu vaccine enough to go around, take time to witness for better health care policy and take time also to monitor and nurture your own energy and health. Be aware of the health of your beloveds, especially those older members of your family and friendship circle who may be at higher risk for illness. Be gentle with each other, and thankful for the good gift you are. In the spirit of both saving and savoring, take time to work for justice and also time to love the beauty of the world and each other.
With love, in faith,
Nina