The President Has COVID

I have woken up to probably 60 sunrises at this place, but have never seen one like this. I’m not even sure what to call it. If you were to ask me if if the sky is clear I would have to say yes, there’s blue sky up there. And yet, the lake is shrouded in fog, but not so much fog that I can’t see the reflection of the blue sky in the water of the lake! As I was taking this picture, somewhere out there in that blue-gray mist, a loon greeted me with his charming warble.

So, the President and First Lady have tested positive for COVID. Trump is now at Walter Reed Hospital for treatment. The reaction to this news has become a sort of Rorschach Test of political passions. I’ve seen everything from shock, to sympathy, to ridicule, even accusations that its all a PR stunt by his campaign. Nobody has the power to divide us like Donald Trump.

My reaction is a product of my upbringing, particularly, the example set by my Dad. I remember very well the day I came home from class when I was a student at University of Richmond to find my father sitting on the end of his bed watching a small black and white TV with a tear running down his face. Why? He was watching a special report bulletin reporting the attempted assassination of Gerald Ford by “Squeaky’ Fromm. I was surprised at the news, but even more so by his emotional response...he wasn’t particularly fond of the President. When I asked he simply said, “He’s the President of the United States, son.” Same thing happened years later when Reagan got shot. Him and Mom both. They were old school Christians who took seriously the words of Jesus in Matthew’s Gospel...”You have heard it said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you....If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that?”

So, when I hear that Donald Trump has COVID, I put aside any notions of mockery and derision that come to mind, and concentrate on hoping that both of them are ok and will recover. I refuse to wish death on another human being. It is counterintuitive, even uncomfortable sometimes. But I have to choose love over hate, because it’s the only choice available to me that leads to human flourishing. To passionate partisans, my take will seem foolish, “sentimental hogwash” in the immortal words of Potter in It’s a Wonderful Life. So be it.