I started this post a couple of weeks ago and then didn't get back to it. At the time, I had driven to Dallas to visit family and encountered several road work areas, including areas where one lane had been resurfaced and the other not, resulting in sometimes a slight bump when changing lanes and other times a jolt enough to cause a little heart skip and moment of fear. It seemed to me symbolic of my world at the time. My son and daughter-in-law were working from home, as were many others, and my grandson was finishing his first year of college online. In the last week, my routine and conveniences at home were upset by a needed repair to the floor in the main bathroom. My youngest grandson was scheduled to get his braces off and his driver's license in the same week. Both were cancelled due to shutdowns--a major upset when you're sixteen.
But at the end of the day, as I would sit down to watch the national and world news, it became obvious that the uneven lane scenario was not a good analogy. The road is full of sinkholes, sometimes opening up on people just when they think they are on solid ground.
I am very lucky. Yes, it's a lonely existence and difficult to plan much beyond a day. But I have plenty of food and supplies. Friends check on me and offer assistance. I am on a fixed income, which in normal times is considered a detriment but in this upheaval is a blessing. Most of all I have no health issues.
Yesterday I heard about 1300 people in a refugee camp in Greece with one water tap and no soap. New York and many other 'hot spots' of the virus are facing shortages of medical personnel and supplies. Unemployment is skyrocketing.
Closer to home, old friends/neighbors lost their son to pancreatic cancer. Another old friend and classmate lost her younger brother to a stroke. These families and many others face dealing with one of life's greatest tragedies without the personal support of friends and family that makes the grieving process more bearable. Local churches and organizations have had to cancel fund-raisers, which will hurt their causes in the long run. Decisions have to be made about reopening schools.
You know all of this. You can't avoid it. No one knows how long it will last. I have no words of wisdom or panaceas to fix this. All we are left with is sharing, caring, and preparing as best we can. And hope. There's always hope.
But at the end of the day, as I would sit down to watch the national and world news, it became obvious that the uneven lane scenario was not a good analogy. The road is full of sinkholes, sometimes opening up on people just when they think they are on solid ground.
I am very lucky. Yes, it's a lonely existence and difficult to plan much beyond a day. But I have plenty of food and supplies. Friends check on me and offer assistance. I am on a fixed income, which in normal times is considered a detriment but in this upheaval is a blessing. Most of all I have no health issues.
Yesterday I heard about 1300 people in a refugee camp in Greece with one water tap and no soap. New York and many other 'hot spots' of the virus are facing shortages of medical personnel and supplies. Unemployment is skyrocketing.
Closer to home, old friends/neighbors lost their son to pancreatic cancer. Another old friend and classmate lost her younger brother to a stroke. These families and many others face dealing with one of life's greatest tragedies without the personal support of friends and family that makes the grieving process more bearable. Local churches and organizations have had to cancel fund-raisers, which will hurt their causes in the long run. Decisions have to be made about reopening schools.
You know all of this. You can't avoid it. No one knows how long it will last. I have no words of wisdom or panaceas to fix this. All we are left with is sharing, caring, and preparing as best we can. And hope. There's always hope.
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