Life in the Times of Social Distancing

 Hello again.

Thank you for all the kind comments and encouragement. This blog is going to have a “Now” and “Then” feel to it.  Sometimes it will be about insight I have on current happenings, and sometime it might just be silly anecdotes from the bumpy back road that has been my life.

When I started this blog, it served as a casual daily report from the road.  Ten years ago, on April 10^th I set off, by myself, on a two month 8000 mile road trip across the southern part of the U.S., up the East Coast into New England, then Quebec and Ontario, before going back into the U.S. and my then home, California. 

Well, much has happened in those ten years.  After living in the States for thirty-two years, I am back living in Canada.  It was always my dream to move to a small town, buy a quirky old house and walk everywhere.  So in 2017 I moved to Stratford, Ontario, a not so small town (pop. approx. 35,000) about 70 miles/100 kilometres from Toronto.  It is everything I hoped for, old house, wonderful neighbours, walking distance to downtown and all the theatres.  That’s the big bonus; it’s a theatre town, home of the Stratford Festival that runs from April to November.  Normally

To all my friends in California, yes, there is life outside of CA and I do miss good Cal-Mex food, beaches and boutique wineries.  To all my friends here, thanks for taking me into your lives.  So, here I am in Stratford, happily building a new community and looking forward to new adventures.  Even this can be an adventure with the right perspective.

These are not normal times.  The theatres are dark and silent.  We, like people everywhere, are staying in our homes… social distancing, self isolating, sheltering in place.  All this new language has come into our lives. Covid-19 has brought the world we know to a halt.  The upside is we are all in the same boat.  It is a great equalizer..  I won't tell you it is easy, some days my mind becomes a bad neighborhood and I shouldn't be there alone.  I try to focus one day at a time and only worry about things I can do something about. 

I live alone so my challenge is to amuse myself every day.  Luckily I love to cook and putter, and here’s some of what I am doing:

• Three ingredient day.  Everything in every meal had three ingredients.  Except for the dessert, which was a major fail, it went well.  Try it.
• Theme days – pick a theme, any theme and make it the focal point of the day.  I did a 50’s day… found a 50’s radio station, danced around the house, made 50’s food – mac ‘n cheese, brownies…
• I would like to say I am catching up on my reading, but I would read all the time if I could under any circumstances.
• Other?

What I really miss is banter, wit, social debate.  Living alone right now has challenges, feelings of isolation, being dependent on others, and hours to fill.  I keep putting things off, thinking I can do that tomorrow.  Yesterday I had an insight, maybe I'm worried about running out of things to do, so I do nothing. I look forward to daily chats on the phone with someone; especially friends that make me laugh, or think.  For me, because I’m an introvert, the whole ZOOM thing has no appeal; however it is a godsend to the extroverts.  

With lots of time to think I have been focusing on gratitude.  Having been raised in a liturgical faith I was taught a prayer, as a child, the "Our Father" and there is a line in it, "Give us this day our daily bread."  I am very aware of that concept now.  Every day I stop when something nice happens and acknowledge...this is my daily bread... a neighbour who brings me groceries, a random conversation with a friendly stranger across a street while walking the dog, a phone call from a friend or an email from a friend I haven't heard from for a while.

Would love to hear from some of you out there, how are you coping?

There is a comment section below, please leave comments there.  If you want to continue following my ramblings, click the follow button, bottom right and that will keep you connected, if you're not tech savvy, email me and I will create an email list for future blogs.  For those of you on Facebook, I will post it there.

Hi, it has been awhile since I have blogged.  Strange times, strange behaviors.  And that is what I want to talk about.

These are strange and precarious times. And we will all react in a way that, at the moment answers some need we have, to be seen, to be heard or to be connected.  This is not a time to judge, to censure or correct, this is simply a time to be kind.

Many if you are fortunate to have families or significant others. Bravo, however, many have not.  Many people, especially people of an age, are home alone and their minds are wandering around on strange turf.
Thanks to Social Media we have have a window to expressing ourselves as never before.

I ask that you all became patient with whatever.  Some will post with multiple warnings, news flashes, cynicism, memes, hugs, pass ons, etc.  If this is not your cup of tea, then simply ignore it.  However, if compassion clears you to recognize that some of us, me included, are feeling isolated mildly to extremely frightened, then reach back.  Call friends who live alone, send funny texts.  But, please don't judge.

Science tells us we need many hugs on a daily basis, find a way to send those to shut ins, elderly neighbors.

I am fortunate to have amazing neighbors, yet I have my moments.  Will I ever meet my new great granddaughter? Will I see family members who are across the continent?  Late at night, these thoughts ramble through my head.

So, please, be kind, love one another.

I'm back, there will be more

e.e. Cummings wrote a I hold your heart
I hold it in my heart
I hold it forever

I hold you all in my heart.