Pandemic and Protests - June Update

Such a roller coaster last month says the May update I wrote. The case count has certainly slowed overall and there have been a lot of discussions and debates about different states starting to allow things to reopen. (Although case counts have still increased about 600k in the last month). Utah moved from orange to yellow in mid-may and was shooting to move to green around the first week of June. However, starting around the end of May there has been a huge spike in cases over the first two weeks in June.

In yellow church will be allowed to be held again with restrictions. The current plan is to have each ward take 1 Sunday and then hold enough sacrament meetings to allow no more than 99 people in the chapel at a time. However, if people are not comfortable yet, they can choose to continue to do the sacrament at home. We have been trying to figure out what this looks like for us. Our big changes: We now allow our kids to play with the Wardell's. Shantel goes on hikes with the Middleton's. Other than that we are trying to be pretty conservative. We continue to wear masks when we leave the house.

Amid this pandemic there has been additional turmoil related to racial injustice in the country. The spark that started the flame was the killing of a black man by a police officer in Minneapolis after he had been taken into custody for allegedly passing a counterfeit $20 bill. As back drop minority groups have been the group most impacted by the Pandemic as they have continued to work on site (don't have jobs to work from home) and often get sick, or are the group hardest hit by job loss.  Among this backdrop, protests began in Minneapolis. Soon they spread across the country. The first week included numerous protests that turned violent and included rioting and looting. This included protests in Salt Lake City, Provo etc. The last week the protests have continued, but much more peacefully. In addition to the protests there has been significant discussion about race in the country, especially through social media. 

Shantel and I both strongly believe in treating each person as Jesus would treat them. We believe that black people in the country should not be marginalized or mistreated because of the color of their skin. Minorities have faced challenges and injustice that we can't even imagine. We agree that there need to be changes to help protect minorities from discrimination and hatred. The saddest part is that this issue is not new. Shantel and I are striving to help be part of the answer in our own ways. I've been reading a book, Just Mercy to better understand the challenges that black people and other minorities face. I'm also trying to be more vocal this election cycle about who I am voting for and advocating for those people. I believe we need strong leaders who are willing to make the changes needed to protect black people in this country and want to help drive change through that. Shantel has been educating, sharing via social media and focusing on making sure that when she hears racism she takes a stand to verbally call it out and be opposed to it. 

This year has been tumultuous and certainly the current circumstances have added to that. However, we have discussed frequently that our focus should be on the injustices that are occurring and work to correct those rather than on the protests/riots that come from the anger of those injustices. 

From the home perspective, we have had a busy month, here are a few pandemic related pictures and notes. 

This is the first time we really let Lydia talk with Lilly (still keeping distance). Thankfully they have been able to play together for about the last month and it has been so good for them. 

A social distance visit from Grandma and Grandpa Peaden for Lydia's birthday party.

Friday night movie night continues with Pizza and a movie. 

We've continued Zoom game nights with friends (and one with Matt and Julie).

Finally, I continue to work from home. With the recent spike in cases in Utah, it is unlikely that I will return to my office soon. I have truly loved working from home. There are so many small perks, but I'll name a few. I love love love when Shantel comes in to say hi. It is great to chat throughout the day and especially nice because she often will give a little 1 minute shoulder massage. I love seeing the kids throughout the day. Shantel is so kind and brings me breakfast and lunch every day. I love when I hear Lucy or Caleb waking up for a nap and I get to get them up. I love this picture because Lucy and I are just hanging out while I am on a conference call or training.

There will certainly be another update in July as we continue to deal with the challenges from the Pandemic. I think we are still filled with worry for how things will progress. Most worrisome is how to deal with the challenge of being able to spend time with my parents. COVID-19 would be devastating to them, but it is hard for them not to be able to see us and our kids. It would be less challenging if we knew it would be over in 3 months, but we don't really know how long this will last and that makes it challenging and stressful.