Tim Knutson, Minot

As I sit here on the 5th floor Trinity on the COVID unit looking to the north I see Thomas Funeral Home and kitty corner Dakota Hope Clinic at the Main Medical building. One business that that brings comfort to the end of life and the other that promotes the beginning of life on this earth. And I have been here a little over 2 weeks now and have had lots of time to reflect.

I’m a recent 50 year old man with no underlying conditions and stay active as much the next guy. So when I came down with this to this extreme, it was not surprising not just to me, but others in the community that know me. My wife had also came down positive and does have some hard breathing issues and yet her condition was bad and done within days. Then you look up the symptoms to COVID and I had them all. So. whether or not it’s because our individual healthiness or not, what it comes down to is that we both got it, and differently.

In the beginning of COVID I was a bit pious towards our Gov’t, business’ and individuals that may have been a little more concerned about wearing masks, separating and doing sanitizer. I basically was rebellious, to which now I am embarrassed at how my public demeanor was at those times.

I want to apologize to the nurse at the lab for asking me to put on a mask for my 50 year old check up and I got all uppity. I want to apologize to the girls at the front desk at Menards for giving them attitude when they were simply doing their job of asking me to buy a $.53 mask. I want to apologize for my social media presence and not being more approachable.

I’m still an independent, patriotic, ‘don’t tread on me’ type of guy. But I can honestly say without my tongue in my cheek, ‘We are all in this together’.

COVID has managed to spread the fear of death into the whole world in a relatively short amount of time. When this all started, I have to say, I was not ‘doubting’ it was real but, I was very ‘skeptical’ of the severity of it.

The good side of COVID spreading the ‘fear of death’ is here though. Yes, good. Because it has caused all to consider their fate. And like the bluegrass song lyrics “Everyone wants to go to heaven, but no one wants to die.”

Philippians 1:21 To live is Christ and to die is gain.

As a Christian I have a commission upon my life, to point people to the truth of Jesus and His life given for all of us. With the air left in my lungs, that is what I am doing now with you. Find out what it means to ‘Live as Christ’, as we only are appointed one time to live and die. And what does it mean to ‘Gain in Death’? Seek the knowledge, understanding an peace that can only come with knowing Christ died, risen and alive today that you can also partake in.

From the time of your conception on this earth to the celebration of your death, there is going to be an epitaph on your tombstone. And may it say something to this effect, “They lived life on earth as Christ and gained life in eternity in their death”.