Tales from Staying Home Part 4

I decided to change the series title because Stay at Home has become a familiar phrase. And while Coronavirus or Covid19 is the pandemic, our home is a Stay at Home Island. Our story (hopefully) is not on the front lines of this chaotic time of history. Although, in a way, we are all the front lines. With heroic front-front lines of healthcare workers and doctors and first responders. We all play our part in how this pandemic will be written in the future. We stay at home (or not). We believe the news stories (or not). We change (or not).

The past few days, a few loud sentiments have moved towards “life must return to normal sometime.” We need to get “back to business”. Maybe Easter is a good idea?

And phew, that was such a sideswipe in my emotional stability. The idea (from a few folks) on the airwaves that maybe the people that needed to self isolate could stay at home, and everyone healthy (meaning under 70 (or 60?) or without a pre-existing condition) could go to work and the movies and back to normal life. After all, it wasn’t fair to everyone if only some people need social distancing.

Nevermind that the strategy isn’t really practical. After all, how can everyone with asthma or cancer treatment isolate socially when they may have children or parents living at home or multiple other ways that are impossible to lock the door while civilization lives normal lives outside? Or that this virus is new in the world. Data is ongoing. Information changes daily. Yes, older and people with underlying conditions have more severe illness, but young people are admitted to ICU as well. Young people die (not as often, but it happens). And an overwhelmed hospital cannot care for the injured or anyone with strokes or heart attacks. So maybe the myth of “only vulnerable people should be inconvenienced” is a myth.

Oh, and a few pundits suggested that older people are willing to do their part so their children and grandchildren can have the world as it was a month ago. Those realistic people would understand the sacrifice. They would be willing to risk sickness and possible death for the greater good. Because it’s not fair to hold back the whole of the economy for the sake of a few vulnerable people.

Exaggeration? Only a little. It may have been more along the lines of “grandparents will do anything for their grandkids. Even accept the risk of this virus.

And, as a vulnerable person, that feeling, that sense of being ‘expendible’ isn’t awesome. It’s one thing when we’re all in this together. It’s another thing when it’s a “bummer for you.” And do I want all the lost jobs? Of course not. But something breaks when people agree to leave people behind (especially in times of danger). It damages everyone- the ones left behind and the ones walking away (or continuing on). Who are we in this moment of drastic and dangerous choices? Are we a culture that comes together? Or comes apart?

Crises bring out the best and the worst in us. We don’t get decide how other people react. We can only, in the end, choose our own choices. And hopefully, we get to see how our own positive choices bring light into the world. We are stronger when we choose to help one another and support strangers and bring our best selves to the situation. Because we live with the choices for the rest of our lives. We become who we choose to be right here, right now.

The talk of a quick return to normalcy faded as numbers of diagnosed cases go up and up. But that sense of “outsider” snuck into my sense of leaning into a collective greater good. Sigh. I can’t control anything outside of our little world. And it’s better to focus on the things that I can control.

So, within our world, spring blooms more and more. Even though the wind has a wicked chill. And yesterday rained so we couldn’t go on a walk.

Distance learning began in earnest. The teens are busy with daily classes and homework. Ian and I are muddling through the stack of work from his school. We’re making it work. I started projects for Forest Fairy Crafts.

On a neighborhood walk, Ian picked up a leaf and started an enthusiastic puppet show for his less-than-enthusiastic sister.

The sun did come out for one entire day! It was warm enough that Ian jumped in the pool. That woke him up :) He got right out again of course. The warmth was warmer than previous days. But the water was chilly! It did occupy them for a good hour debating whether it should be attempted :)

And more neighborhood walks and scootering. Jessica made crepes which we filled with canned peaches and topped with gogurt (yum). And the birch trees in the front yard sprouted tiny little leaves out of tightly held buds. Spring will find us :)

Stay well, friends ❤️

Sad statistic: More than 50,000 cases in the United States