Month: November 2020

Before the race starts, the horses parade around the saddling paddock, led closely by a horseman. Crowds line the perimeter, folks watching closely for signs of their readiness to run: do they look energetic, ears alert? are they feisty or placid? When the bugler plays the Call to Post, the jockeys swing up to their backs and together take to the track.

Here at the beginning of Thanksgiving Week in the year of our Lord 2020, today is the day I jump up on the horse and head out to the starting gate. Even though our holiday will only include people in our Pod, that’s nothing new for us.

The New Yorkers (sadly, Not in our Pod and We not in Theirs) have had a serious tradition pulled from them: Oireachtas, the annual Irish Dance Gathering in Philadelphia, has been cancelled. They have attended the competition for the last many years, preparing for it Non-Stop in the lead-up. They’re bummed, but stoic.

Here at Sonnystone, the Jrs usually arrive early for the Macy’s Parade and we have our Dinner around noon–turkey, mashed potatoes, crescent rolls, and pumpkin pie, along with assorted side dishes. That will remain unchanged, since NYC is offering up a fake Macy’s Parade that we Truly Appreciate. After sleeping off the feast, they have always celebrated at Jessica’s grandma’s house; not this year.

Traditionally we have put up our Christmas tree on Thanksgiving Weekend, but why should we be Traditional when so many people can’t be? Instead, This year, I’ll send as much food back home with the Jrs and start packing. We’ll leave early Saturday morning and drive to WDW, our Home Away from Home.

As usual, we are bringing cooler weather with us as we head to Florida; high temps in the 80s are now predicted to be barely 70 during our stay. I actually like that, and don’t mind a little rain, either. The masks will feel more comfortable, the crowds will be thinner, and I’ll wear a jacket with pockets so I don’t have to carry a purse.

Ha! you say…she’s preaching about pods and restrictions, but takes the risk of traveling herself! Well, I will Not use truck-stop bathrooms and I will not have contact with the Unmasked…Even my doctor agreed that Disney World is Safe. If only there had been a mask mandate right out of quarantine, the whole world would look like Disney.

So I’m picking up my pace as I near the starting gate, looking alert, feeling a little skittish, not sure if I’m the jockey or the horse…

Samantha’s visiting again today to help me with decorations.

When the gate opens, I’ll be ready to run…

Peace

The sound of the wind,, like a distant train, woke me this morning. It didn’t wake me Up, but rather woke me Down, with the plaintive refrain of the Son Volt song, “Windfall” stuck in my brain:

“Both feet on the floor, two hands on the wheel, May the wind take your troubles away…”

It’s still stuck there, though I’ve been piddling around here for hours trying to cheer myself up.

Went for a physical exam this week and was thrilled to find that I’m in excellent shape for an old broad. Had the grandkids over on Wednesday, took them to Barnes & Noble on Saturday and that’s always Fun. So what’s my problem? Could it be that Mars is in retrograde right now? Or is it the shift in barometric pressures with all this Weather?

The relief that I experienced just after the election dissipated as my focus went back to the pandemic. The compassion I feel for nurses and healthcare workers is overwhelming me. The Indiana Department of Health has kept me on their list for call-outs, and I got a notice the other day that many of our hospitals are in dire need and requesting volunteers. I’m way too far from my hospital days and would be more of a hindrance than a help, but I feel guilty. My heart is heavy with the suffering.

But then, we all know people now who have had Covid and have not gotten sick. Their message is, hey it’s not that bad. The fact that we’re able to treat the infection better now, especially if you have access to $100,000 therapies, seems to embolden some, as well. It looks rather hopeless — not for me, because I wear a mask; not for the folks refusing to wear a mask, because they don’t care; but for the hospitals and nursing homes and the people who need care and the folks who provide it. I am fervently praying for them.

My son-in-law, Eric, buried his beloved mother on Saturday up in Indy, that swamp of corona. Sonya Torres Jose’ was a Wonderful Woman and I was proud to be her friend. She had been ill for a while, finally passed on November 2. She was a widow for nearly 20 years, and I know her boys are comforted to think of her and their Dad together again, dancing in heaven.

While I worried about Eric traveling, there’s the cognitive dissonance from planning a trip during this time… We’re going to Disney World to celebrate Casey’s birthday, leaving the Saturday after Thanksgiving. Disney is doing a great job of enforcing their mask and social distancing guidelines and it’s seriously the Only Place I feel safe to visit…

The Wind is still huffing puffing like the Big Bad Wolf, sending the dried leaves swirling like cyclones across the garden, as the sun peeps in and out from behind the scurrying clouds. There’s a cozy book-chair waiting for me to curl up and work my way through my “To Read” list.

Sorry to be such a Debbie Downer, and I promise I’ll snap out of it soon, but that’s the way I’m feeling this second Sunday in November…

Now and then it keeps you running
It never seems to die
The trail’s spent with fear
Not enough living on the outside
Never seem to get far enough
Staying in between the lines
Hold on to what you can
Waiting for the end
Not knowing when

May the wind take your troubles away
May the wind take your troubles away
Both feet on the floor, two hands on the wheel,
May the wind take your troubles away
Trying to make it far enough, to the next time zone
Few and far between past the midnight hour
Never feel alone, you’re really not alone

from “Windfall” by Son Volt…

Peace

I will never forget how I felt four years ago: a sense of doom permeated my perspective. My post-election blog post attempted to put a good light on the situation, urging us all to come together. I had to take it down, as within 24 hours, the tweets that were to dominate our news for the next four years were proof to me that we truly were doomed. By the time of his inauguration, it was clear to me that he is mentally ill. I joined groups, held signs, got blocked by family and friends, made new friends. It didn’t stop his erratic, self-serving, lying behavior; in fact, it only triggered him to more retribution on anyone who wanted him out of office…(now we know it was about 76million of us).

A friend posted something on FB just after the 2016 election that stuck with me. He said, if you’re waking up every morning feeling sick, now you know how the rest of us felt every morning for eight years of Obama.

That friend is now taking his turn waking up every morning feeling sick and I feel for him, sending Love. However, Joe Biden is not going to launch retaliatory, vengeful, or hostile acts or pursue a personal vendetta against those who are feeling doomed right now. I promise.

“To make progress, we have to stop treating our opponents as enemies.

We are not enemies. “

President-Elect Joe Biden

I have tried my best to avoid politics on this blog, partly because I don’t write that kind of report well, and partly because I know my readers don’t all share my political persuasions. But in every one of these moments when you have to Stand for Something, I have Stood for Peace. I pray for Peace in the World, across the planet, throughout the Universe; peace for every human being. I work prayerfully for Peace in my heart and soul, hoping that it may be contagious.

My sincere hope is that Americans can reconcile, find some common ground. Maybe that ground is closer than we thought…Check out this article…

Whatever-happens-next-Americans-are-pretty-sure-they-want-to-be-stoned-when-it-does

While we stood still, the breezes through the trees sent the leaves rustling to the ground in heaps of colour. The sun has been brilliant, the skies blue, and the temperatures warm, so I’ve been outside enjoying. Stay Strong, dear friends.

Peace