wait and hope

It was a banner day today with a drive to the vet office to pick up tick meds for the dogs, followed by a quick trip into the grocery store for Carm. The tick pick up was the drive by sort where you are glad for the tailgate open and close feature in your new car. Yup, we didn’t even have to leave the car - paid over the phone and then the office person came out to the car and put the meds in the back. No passage of virus occurred.

The grocery store was another matter. People seemed cavalier about their foray into a building where everyone has a ‘concealed carry’ license for Covid-19. Carm went in with his ‘bullet proof vest’: a mask and a disinfecting wipe. Did it protect him? Only time will tell.

I read a riveting article written by a woman in New York City last night, right before lights out… bad idea. She and her husband live in a tiny apartment with 2 kids, a 5 month old and a 2 year old. Both she and her husband were hit hard with Covid-19. Her story recounts struggling with illness and 2 kids at the same time. It was scary.

It couldn’t help but ratchet up the worry about taking care of our pets if we both get sick at the same time. Worse if we have to be hospitalized. Dire scenarios swirled in my head as I tried to get to sleep. Apprehension was still gripping my guts when I woke up. It took a walk outside in the sunshine to shake me out of it.

And sunny it is! And warm :-)  Again I was outside with just my flannel shirt and a down vest (and of course pants, etc). Oh heaven! The birds were going crazy as they orchestrated their ode to spring. It was wonderful and I forced myself to slow down and really appreciate every moment, every sight, every sound. I reminded myself that I can’t let myself go down certain paths as who knows where they may lead. Actually I do know and the last thing I need is a mood episode during what is already a crisis.

So, what were a few of my pleasures today? Of course the sunshine and everything else that makes today such a beautiful day. Also, the landscape whizzing past my window as we drove to the next village. Everything is brown and beige but I know that beneath the drab surface lies an explosion of green. I can’t forget the sight of Carm coming back with a laden grocery cart - we know that if we get sick we’ll be good for 2 or more weeks. There is a fundamental feeling of pleasure when the larder is full. The sight of the red dog asleep in a sunspot always pleases. A covid cookie break with homemade chocolate chip cookies in the afternoon is always enjoyed :-)  There are just a few moments from my day today.

Headline tonight: closure of all City facilities, services and large public gatherings will be extended to June 30. Over 366,112 cases, with 10,859 deaths in the US. There are a total of 16,667 (15,512 yesterday) cases of Covid-19 in Canada today, with 323 (280 yesterday) deaths to date.

“There is neither happiness nor misery in the world; there is only the comparison of one state with another, nothing more. He who has felt the deepest grief is best able to experience supreme happiness. We must have felt what it is to die, Morrel, that we may appreciate the enjoyments of life.

Live, then, and be happy, beloved children of my heart, and never forget, that until the day God will deign to reveal the future to man, all human wisdom is contained in these two words, 'Wait and Hope.”

~Alexandre Dumas