Social distancing is putting people out of work, canceling school and tanking the stock market. It has been driven by fear, and it is creating even more fear as money problems and uncertainty grow. However, at its core is love, and a sacrifice to protect those most vulnerable to the coronavirus (冠状病毒) effects—the elderly, people with compromised immune systems, and those whose life-saving resources would be used up by a malignant epidemic.
Americans make life-saving decisions every day as a matter of course. We cut food into bite-sized pieces, we wear seatbelts, and we take care not to exceed the speed limit. But social distancing is unique in that it is completely self- sacrificing. Those who will benefit may be the elderly relatives of the random person we didn’t pass in Starbucks, on the subway, or in the elevator.
Social distancing is millions of people making hundreds of sacrifices to keep the elderly alive. It doesn’t include the temptations to run from society or make an excuse to avoid one’s obligations—such as life-saving medical work or the parental obligation to buy groceries. What it does include is applying love through caution. And in doing so, it offers an amazing opportunity for those who care about the elderly to find new ways to love them.
If we’re not engaged as much in our normal work or school, we have extra time to call parents and grandparents. We can also ask elderly relatives how to best support them spiritually and use our sacrifices as an opportunity to bring us, our community and the world closer.
v 原文翻译
保持社交距离导致人们失业，学校停课，股市暴跌。它是由恐惧驱动的，而随着金钱问题和不确定性的加剧，它也在制造更多的恐惧。然而，保持社交距离的核心是爱和自我牺牲去保护那些最容易受冠状病毒影响的人——也就是老年人、免疫系统有损害的人、以及那些救生资源都被恶性流行病耗尽的人。
美国人每天都理所当然地做出拯救生命的决定。我们把食物切成小块，系上安全带，小心翼翼地不超速行驶。但社交距离的独特之处在于它是完全自我牺牲的。那些受益的人可能是我们在星巴克、地铁或电梯里没有遇到的随机的人的年长的亲属。
保持社交距离是数百万人为了让老年人活下去而做出的大量牺牲。但它不包括诱惑你去逃离社会，也不包括你找借口逃避自己的义务——比如挽救生命的医疗工作的义务，或者父母买杂货的义务。它确实包含的是谨慎运用爱。通过这样做，它为那些关心老人的人提供了一个奇妙的机会，让他们找到新的方式去爱他们。
如果我们不像平时那样忙于工作或学习，我们就有额外的时间给父母和祖父母打电话。我们也可以询问年长的亲属如何在精神上给予他们最好的支持，并利用我们的牺牲作为一个机会，让我们、我们的社区和世界更紧密。
