This week has been the first week that "things" have started to feel normal. We have kept ourselves isolated and limited contact with family. For us family has always been a source of comfort, and we do not go long without a large family gathering. But this week marked the first of several social distancing visits, and it felt good to see and hear my loved ones again. However, I keep revisiting that first week of shelter in place, and I find myself nostalgic for the peace and calm of my home. There was uncertainty, yes, but my husband and sister (who lives with us) were home with me, the dogs were content, and we had a few quiet days of aloneness... That is what this photo represents. It was week one, and the house was clean, the sun was out... all was calm and closed off from the rest of the world. I felt both relieved and guilty to be sheltered in place in such a comforting space.
August 15, 2020
For some unfathomable reason, I am feeling optimistic this week. I think it's because the 2020 election is FINALLY in sight, and I think Trump is going to lose. I have faith that if Biden wins that he will immediately put in place a plan to deal with COVID, and try and bring people back together. I am actually feeling in my bones that this national nightmare will soon be over. I truly hope I am right. I had a great experience on Sunday. A neighborhood clinic in conjunction with the Giant Supermarket was offering free flu shots and free Covid testing. My spouse and son and I all went and got flu shots. When we got there, the woman checking us in asked if we had insurance, even though it was free. She explained that everyone who had insurance was helping the effort, because the more the clinic got reimbursed by private insurance, the more shots and tests they could offer. We were happy to contribute. Happy that in some small way, in our progressive community, clinics and businesses are pitching in to protect everyone's health. Pitching in where the federal government has failed miserably. Although this effort was private, this is what public health would look like, if we had it. I'm pretty sure that if most Americans understood what public health care truly was--i.e. you walk up to your local clinic and get all your vaccines for free, they would support it. Our lack of any kind of public health care is truly a fault of politics, greed, and imagination--people unable to imagine the positive impact on society if we were ALL cared for by a public system.
October 21, 2020