LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — While vaccines are a crucial component of getting through the pandemic, one Madison County man wants to remind his fellow Kentuckians that we can't let our guards down.
University of Kentucky beat writer for Kentucky Today and publisher at the Berea Citizen, Keith Taylor, tested positive for COVID-19 at the end of December.
"When you get it, the hardest part is the unknown, because you just don't know how it'll affect your body," Taylor said.
His wife Rhonda, who is a retired Kingston Elementary School teacher, tested positive, too.
"She calls me on the 22nd and says, 'Honey, I can't taste or smell', Taylor said. "That was her tell-all that she had it."
Taylor believes he may have pinpointed the day when he contracted the virus.
"I do remember walking by someone who coughed or sneezed in Walmart and for a split second, I was like 'Oh my gosh!' but it's hard to know for sure," Taylor said.
He doesn't know if that's when he contracted the virus for sure, but he does know that he and Rhonda have been extremely careful.
He said they mask up, use hand sanitizer, and keep their distance from others whenever they're in public.
"We don't take chances," he said. "And we didn't take any chances and we still got it."
Testing positive was terrifying for Taylor because he had just watched his own mother battle and die from the virus in October.
"I miss mom," he said. "But I guess going through this was a way kind of helping us understand the value of life. It's very precious."
Now, he's urging Kentuckians to take that lesson to heart.
"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you," he said. "That's the motto I live by and that's what I would tell everybody. Not only think of yourself if you get the virus. Think of others. And be safe be careful and get the vaccine."
