COVID-19 is Scaring My Child
It’s time to give my kid — and myself — a break from the news
On a recent afternoon, my husband and I had a conversation with our eight-year-old about how the COVID-19 pandemic will affect us for the foreseeable future. Officials closed her school nearly two weeks ago, but for the most part, my husband’s and my work routines had been unchanged.
Then finally, he got word that he will be working from home most days.
We want to be open with her about the decisions we’re making, so we asked her if she understood how the change meant she would not be going to daycare unless absolutely necessary. She said she did, but we could tell something was bothering her.
“Why do you look so sad?” I asked as I stuck out an arm to offer a hug.
“I want to see my friends, and …,” the rest of the sentence came out as little more than a great big sob. Once we got her to calm down, she tried again.
“I miss my friends, but coronavirus scares me,” she said.
Every now and then, I have moments when the difference between her childhood and mine comes into strong focus. This was one of them. When I was a kid, I feared the ghost in my closet, the monster under my bed, and spies. (Yes, spies. My older sister told me they dressed in…