What can I say that hasn’t already been said about this extraordinary moment in time? I have so many words, and yet so few. The news of COVID-19 is coming at us hard and fast, a tsunami of information, more than we can wrap our minds around.

Anxiety. Fear. Uncertainty. What was our normal existence just two weeks ago seems a lifetime away.  Our days now are quiet, pared back. We wake, we wait, we sleep.

Yet in the waiting, we find tiny moments of happiness. A phone call from a friend, checking in. A slice of warm bread. Words of encouragement spotted on a daily walk.

These words by Laura Kelly Fanucci are making the rounds on social media, and they express more eloquently what I’m trying to convey. I hope they resonate with you as well.

When this is over,
may we never again
take for granted
a handshake with a stranger
full shelves at the store
conversations with neighbors
a crowded theatre
Friday night out
the taste of communion
a routine checkup
the school rush each morning
coffee with a friend
the stadium roaring
each deep breath
a boring Tuesday
life itself.

When this ends,
may we find
that we have become
more like the people
we wanted to be
we were called to be
we hoped to be
and may we stay
that way–better
for each other
because of the worst.

Stay safe, friends. Stay well. And take nothing for granted.

~Leslie