Thread by @gradydoctor

1/
You: “Hello! Will this be your first dose today?”
Me: “No. Second.”

You nodded and then entered something into the tablet in your hands. Suddenly your head flung up as if you’d forgotten something.

You: “I’m sorry. How y’all doing this evening?”

I offered a thumbs up.

2/
Me: “Especially glad to get here before y’all closed.”
Son: “Not me!”

*laughter*

Me: “What about you, friend?”
You: “Ma’am?”
Me: “How're you doing?”
You: “Oh! Me? I’m good!”
Me: "Yeah?"

*laughter*

You: “You’re the first person to ask me that all day!”
Me: “Awww dang.”

3/
You handed me two forms to fill out and gestured for us to roll forward.

Son: “Do you think this one will hurt more?”
Me: “Mine didn’t.”

When I finished filling out the forms, you were back beside my window.

You: “Perfect. Y’all should be next.”
Son: *groan*

*laughter*

4/
I looked over my shoulder back at my teenaged son and then back at you.

Me: “Can you cosign with me that the second shot doesn’t hurt any more than the first?”
You: *to my son* “That’s the word on the street, little bro.”

My son groaned even louder.

5/
Son: “Did you go in the same arm both times?”
You: “Most people go in the arm they don’t write with both times.”
Son: “But what did you do?”
You: *chuckling* “Every person is different. I say if you righty, let’s do the left.”

I swirled your responses around in my ears.

6/
Your exchange with my son ended with your gloved hand meeting his for a fist bump through the window.

As we waited our turn, you gestured to the stethoscope sitting on my passenger seat.

You: “You work in a hospital?”
Me: “Yeah. At Grady.”

You gave me a nod of respect.

7/
You: “I was born at Grady.”
Me: “Grady babies STAND UP!”
You: “Aaayyeeee!”

As if on cue, we both did a little dance—you beside my window and me in my car.

Me: “Grady babies are royalty. Loooove me some Grady babies.”
You: *shrugs* “Then you love me.”

We laughed again.

8/
Another person approached the other side of the car and began preparing to vaccinate my son. For whatever reason, you hadn’t moved on yet.

Me: “Grady baby? Can I ask your thoughts on getting vaccinated against COVID?”
You: “Me?”
Me: “Yeah, you.”

You took in a drag of air.

9/
Even behind your mask I could tell that I’d embarrassed you. I shook my head and raised my hand.

Me: “Wait. You don’t have to answer that. I'm sorry, fam.”
You: “Nah you cool. Funny. You the first person to ask me THAT, too.”
Me: "Yeah?"
You: "Actually yeah."

10/
You: “Ha. Seem like you knew ‘fore you asked me anyway.”
Me: “Them roundabout answers was kinda smooth though.”

*laughter*

You: “Yeah. Crazy as it sound, I haven’t yet.”
Me: *listening*
You: “I know you like, ‘How are you working in a vaccine spot and ain’t vaccinated?’”

11/
Me: “Nah. Everybody is different, you know?”
You: “You got yours I know.”
Me: “Yup. I was in the Moderna study. Or rather I’m still in it.”
You: “Word?”

We both paused in deference as the needle entered my son’s deltoid. I watched the grimace on his face relax.

12/
Me: “See?”
Son: “Man. I barely felt that.”

He pressed his Airpods back into his ears and shrugged. And I turned my attention back to you.

Me: “Thanks for the help, Grady baby.”
You: “Ummm. . .hey, so what you do at Grady?”
Me: “I’m a doctor.”
You: "Good stuff."

13/
Me: “Listen--if you want, I can answer any questions about the shots you might have. That’s if you have any.”
You: *looking over your shoulder* “Now?"
Me: *shrug*
You: "Ummm. . . . “
Me: “But if you need to get back to work, that’s cool, too.”

14/
You froze and just sort of stared at me for a few beats. Then you spoke.

You: “That’s crazy that nobody never asked me straight up like that.”
Me: “Nobody in this line? Or nobody period?”
You: “I mean when I started they said we could get it. But that’s it.”
Me: “Hmmm.”

15/
You: “So. . .you think I should, huh?”
Me: “You still didn’t tell me your concern about it.”

*silence*

You: *squinting an eye* “It just seem shady. Like they got this hella fast and still don’t have nothing to stop AIDS? That sound crazy to me.”
Me: “I hear you.”

16/
I pulled my car up some more & over to the side. My son looked up when he saw you walking by my window again.

Son: *Airpods in, loudly* “I know already what you’re doing, mom.”
Me: *eyeroll* “No you don’t.”
Son: *shaking head & looking back at his phone* "Uh, ok, mom."

17/
Me: “So is that the thing that’s your concern? That we don’t have something similar to prevent HIV?”
You: “Not exactly. But that does make it seem like they can find a cure to anything they think is important enough to cure depending on who it’s killing.”

Damn.

18/
Me: “I can see how someone would think that.”
You: *shrug* “That’s why a lot of us feel some type of way about all this. Feel me?"
Me: *listening* "Yeah."
You: “Plus I kind of feel like I dodged the #COVID bullet already.”
Me: *raising eyebrows*

You laughed. I did not.

19/
Me: “I wish it wasn’t still a few in the chamber. Shit. More than a few.”
You: *looking down nodding*

Then you looked up and trained your eyes back on mine.

You: “Dang. I can tell you don’t be faking when it come to the people you love.”
Me: “Nope."

*silence*

20/
Me: “Okay, then, Grady baby. I hope you’ll make one of these shots yours.”

You stopped, looked around, and then back at my pulled over car. It was as if something clicked in that moment.

That I loved you, too.

You: “Damn. You serious about yours.”
Me: “We got to be.”

21/
I noticed more cars joining the queue. You did, too.

Me: “Alright then. Let me let you get back to work.”
You: “Hey listen—I 'preciate you.”
Me: “You a Grady baby. I love you too much to not try. Plus I'm serious about mine.”

You gave a knowing nod and waved goodbye.

22/
And that was it.

Will you take the #COVIDVaccine? I’m not sure. But I'm glad we had that exchange. And I'm glad you were the one checking us in that day.

Yup.

There's still work to do. Thanks for reminding me to do it in love.

Yeah.

#BlackWhysMatter #loveisthewhat