So, How's it Going?

A two hour Zoom meeting last night with my Bunco pals has made me chatty. It also made me realize that, other than snippets on Facebook or Instagram, I haven't really touched base. April has been ... well ...

1- Weird

Since the beginning of our marriage, April has always happened like this: we clean, prep, and beautify our house in order to rent it during the Masters Golf Tournament, and then we leave town for an epic Spring Break trip which usually lasts 8-9 days. April is usually our busiest, most fun month. We love April. But this year, due to you-know-what, our house rental was moved to November, our big trip to Sedona, AZ was cancelled, and our calendar page for April now was filled with crossed out squares ... stepping stones leading to uncharted territory.

photo with all the weird:

school at home

driveway visits with the Nonni

church at home

front porch drop-offs

masked grocery shopping

2- Humbling

There's is nothing like a pandemic to hone in on the fact that we are dependent creatures. We need each other. Sitting here at home, I am humbled that farmers, factory workers, and truckers are making sure we have food on the shelves; I am humbled that pharmacists, mail carriers, grocery stores, and utility plants are working behind the scenes to ensure we have what we need; and I am beyond humbled by those in the health profession who care for the sick.

Because so many loved this image, Marina Heiduczek is offering it as a free download 

(personal use only). You can download it from her website

3- Simple

Strange as it may seem, I've actually learned to enjoy this time at home. Life has been pared down  (faith, food, family) and our routine is simple: one daily outdoor activity (biking, hiking, golfing), lunch and dinner on the deck, a rousing game of backyard croquet after dinner, a different board game every night, and then a movie to end the day. We gather to pray around the kitchen table, have Zoom family reunions, and make driveway visits to say hello to the Nonni.

Of course, that sense of humility is still there because I realize that not everyone is having the same experience, so even as I am enjoying this time with my family my heart goes out to those who are struggling.

 Joe still has to go to work but is able to telecommute two days a week. 

And he's been able to take some vacation days. 

4- Innovative

We have had to be very creative in helping Jonathan prepare for his move to Atlanta mid-May, which means we're basically doing everything online. Apartment search when we can't go to Atlanta? Virtual tours. Bed frame, vacuum cleaner, sheets? Amazon and Wayfair. Kitchen supplies? Target. Television and mattress? Costco. (The television was a graduation present.) We keep a dry erase board in the family room to keep track of our orders. Luckily, we purchased a couch from our neighbors just before the pandemic hit, and we had a coffee and end table stored in the attic, but other than that we've had to order everything else.

Yesterday's all-important purchase? A colander. He needs to be able to strain his pasta, yes?

The Stockpile

Getting Jonathan ready for the next phase of his life

working as a tax associate at an accounting firm in downtown Atlanta.

5- Challenging

At the beginning of the month, as I contemplated everything that had been crossed out on the calendar, I decided to give myself a challenge to learn, to do, to read, to experience, or to try something new every single day. I decided to do this with the hope that, at the end of the month, I can look back and see a month that wasn't one big joke on what life should have been, but a time of embracing each and every day to the fullest. I called it The Something New Challenge . For example, one day I decided to do a Photographic Study in Green in which I picked a color (green) and then looked for that color in my day and took a photo. So many varying shades on the canal, in our backyard, on the golf course, and in my kitchen! Then in the evening I made a photo collage on my phone. Stay tuned for a blog post all about this challenge!

Green

I woke up this morning

a rainbow overhead

mellow yellow

Venetian red

sunset orange

lucky green

"A color for your day!"

suggested Roy G. Biv

And since it was spring ...

I reached up and picked green.

*from the files of very bad poetry by bia

6- Hopeful

It's so easy to let fear take over. It's so easy to let the news, the latest statistics, or the protests dictate our mood. But ... deep breaths. It's okay to feel down, or bored, or frustrated. But this WILL end. We will return to our lives. Things may be different, and we may have to do things differently, but maybe that's a good thing.