 Mom makes a sign for five-year-old daughter to wear to stop on looker's stairs. After a few too many gocks and stairs at a recent trip to the grocery store, Mary and Rosendaz was pushed to her limit. To provide a wordless comeback to the shoppers who wanted to give her and her daughter a guilt trip, Mary, and made a sign for her daughter to wear. But this may have gotten her and her daughter into more trouble than they could bear. At the moment, most countries in the world are facing the same reality. Strict stay-at-home rules that urge citizens to leave the house only for daily exercise or to stock up on necessities. This has added stress to many aspects of daily life, as Mary and Rosendaz found out on a recent trip to the grocery store. Some single mothers are having a very difficult time during the lockdown. For those who are lucky enough to be able to work from home, it can be impossible to get their work done and simultaneously look after their home and family. And many millions of people have lost their jobs entirely, like Mary Ann, who works as a tattoo artist, but is now without work as the shop she worked in is temporarily closed. For Mary Ann, grocery deliveries weren't even an option. In many rural parts of the United States, grocery delivery services like Instacart and Amazon Fresh aren't available. Although there are some grocery pick-up options that can save you a trip inside the store, they come with costly fees that can quickly add up. As most people know all too well, even once you're inside the grocery store, the situation doesn't get any easier. Necessities are often sold out, and there are strict purchasing limits on most food items, making shopping for families much more difficult, as Mary Ann knew well. Since losing her job at the tattoo shop, Mary Ann often found herself unable to get staples for her household. Things like soap, hand sanitizer, paper towels and many food items now seemed like luxuries because they were often sold out at Walmart. Luckily, Mary Ann had some support from her family. Even though Mary Ann is raising her daughter as a single mother, she isn't alone. She is very close with her son, who helps out with watching his sister when he can. But times have been tough for everyone and Mary Ann's son is considered an essential worker, so he doesn't always have a lot of free time. When money is tight and work is hard to find, it's easier to appreciate the little things like a home-cooked meal and the opportunity to eat dinner with your family. But when even securing groceries is stressful, many mothers take on the task of buying food for their family alone, leaving children at home even when there are no adults present to watch them. Mary Ann is usually a tattoo artist, doing work at Lady Inc. Empire in Texas. But due to social distancing guidelines, the shop had to close its doors to customers leaving Mary, and out of work, and saving every last penny to take care of her family. Sadly, this meant that there were some things they would have to go without for a while. Because a lot of people are in the same unfortunate situation as Mary Ann right now, many are stockpiling goods in case supplies run low on essential items like toilet paper. Sadly, this means that people who have to shop for their goods at grocery stores often can't find these items and have to look for alternatives. But this can lead to some hostile situations. During one trip to her local Walmart when Mary, and had left her daughter at home, she couldn't stop thinking about the young girl's well-being. And the purchasing limits set by the store only made her feel worse, because she couldn't return home with everything she needed for her family. Mary Ann decided not to bring her daughter to Walmart because in the past few weeks, complete strangers tended to gawk and stare at the mother simply for bringing her child with her. Even though the two followed every safety precaution they needed to, this didn't stop onlookers from voicing their opinions. And after a moment, Mary Ann decided that she had had enough. The next time Mary Ann and her daughter visited Walmart, they brought a sign with them that read, I am only five. I can't stay home alone so I have to buy groceries with mommy. Before you start judging stay back six feet. Her mother shared this photo with the caption the sign I made her were because I just know someone will take a picture and talk on social media without knowing all the facts. Reactions were hostile to this sign. One fellow shopper went as far as to alert a security guard of the mother and daughter's presence in the store by claiming that they were not social distancing. After assessing the situation and realizing that Mary Ann was in the right, the security guard simply told the pair to stay safe. While social distancing guidelines help us stay safe and healthy, while we are among other people, these new rules may be difficult for young children to understand or follow. Mary Ann had the right idea to provide her daughter with a mask and seat her in the shopping cart, so she wouldn't have the chance to wander away out of her mother's eyesight. There are many peaceful ways to assure that people around you are following social distancing guidelines, like Mary, and did with her sign. And due to the help of grocery store employees, there are other options for picking up the essentials right now, which means that people like Mary and won't have more unfortunate stories to tell. Mary Ann's fellow shoppers at Walmart no longer gave her funny looks or silent judgment for bringing her daughter to the store after they read her sign, but a few people still had a bone to pick with her after she posted her photo online. One Facebook user shared her disappointment in the mother by saying, this is why they have online order, curbside pickups, and delivery. It may be inconvenient, but your child's health and your health are more important than having to physically go in a store. What this person didn't know is that those options sadly aren't available to everyone and shaming someone for that doesn't provide them any help. Mary Ann and her friends were quick to reply back to naysayers to let them know that, in these difficult times, the best thing to do wasn't continue to argue. People should instead find charities to support that give food and shelter to people in need, because those services are needed now more than ever. Another commenter provided some sympathy saying, I saw a woman at Target with five little kids in tow and the looks she got were horrible. I felt so sad for her. No one knows anyone's situation. It isn't like you can turn and ask a neighbor or friend for help because social distancing. And if more people had that kind of compassion, Mary Ann wouldn't have written her note. Many people are quick to judge right now, because tensions are high. But there's no reason to pass a long judgment on someone else's situation if they aren't causing you any harm. Luckily for Mary Ann, support came in droves after she posted the photos of her daughter. Other folks online shared their thoughts on the photo, which weren't always negative. Facebook user Teresa Warville commented on the photo, you do what you need to do as a parent. No judgment. I will do the same thing. Be safe. The decision of going to a store with children while social distancing guidelines are in place or leaving them at home to make your shopping trips is a stressful one. Facebook user Danielle Arce voiced her shared opinion saying, I love this and may need to use this as I have a five-year-old two and four other kids and of course I haven't gone to the store because of this. One Facebook user felt embarrassed for Mary Ann writing, it's so terrible that a little girl has to wear a sign because a mother doesn't feel safe from criticism in our society today. Sadly, this show of disapproval is just one aspect of the overarching ways that social distancing measures have hurt our empathy skills. When there is more fear and stress present in our daily lives, people are quicker to lash out at others for their actions. Making note of this, it's important to stay as level-headed as possible right now and think of the daily lives of people who are making important sacrifices. The essential workers who make sure that citizens follow safety guidelines are real-life heroes who deserve some admiration. Their jobs are difficult ones, but we can all make their days a bit easier by following the current guidelines.