What Inspired Bailey Bloom and
the Battle of the Bug?      

In mid-March, my kids’ school suddenly closed due to the pandemic. They were aware at that point that there was a virus but the sudden closure of the school led to a lot of questions. Like most parents, I was trying to navigate explaining to my kids what was going on without saying anything that might scare them or make them feel sad. 

In late March, I read an article about kids putting up rainbow art in their windows in the UK, and then I started seeing friends in Brooklyn post about how their neighborhoods were doing it as well. I reached out to our community leaders and suggested we do the same. My family kicked things off by placing a huge rainbow in our window. I initially thought it would be fun for my kids to go on walks and look for other rainbow art in our neighborhood, almost like a scavenger hunt. But, what I didn’t anticipate was how much making the art would affect my kids, particularly my daughter. I explained to her that while people were out walking, it might make them feel less lonely if they saw rainbow art in peoples’ windows. It was a way for us to say to our neighbors, “We’re here with you.” I then explained that stress can affect one’s immune system, thus making people more vulnerable to illness. However, when people are happy, they are less stressed and their bodies are stronger. In a nutshell, I helped her understand that by making art and placing it in our window, she was helping to combat Covid-19.  

After we put up rainbow art, her best friend did it too and it was something they were so excited to share with each other. Since then, we’ve decorated our window several times and we’ve done other things to make people feel happy through the pandemic: sending gifts to friends, dropping off cookies, delivering groceries to people, donating money to various Covid-related charities, etc. It’s really helped my kids feel okay through the pandemic. 

I wrote Bailey Bloom and the Battle of the Bug with my kids in mind and initially just read it to them to help them see how powerful their actions had been. After seeing their reaction to it, I decided to put the story out into the world with the hope that other kids might feel the same.