Covid: Accentuating the Postive

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It’s been a year since we got the warning about a deadly virus spreading throughout the world. We were told to stay home, wash our hands, keep our distance from one another, and then to wear a mask whenever we were forced to go out for food, medical needs, and other necessary reasons. It was scary.

But as time went on, we humans learned to adapt and carry on with life as best and safely as we could. We found ways to be with family and friends outdoors and to give air-hugs. Shopping online with grocery delivery and curb-side pickup was offered by most stores.

Since I have lived alone for almost thirty years, I had an advantage in the adjustment curve. It all started in March 2020. It was soon warm enough to host outdoor visits from family and friends. Then with my writers group we set up a Facebook page for sharing our writing for critique, while gathering at a nearby state park to enjoy some social time every few weeks.

Looking back over the past year I realized I could list quite a few positive things I’ve managed to do. I’ll share my list and hope you can make a list of your own. Not that it was all peaches and cream, I can make a longer list of negative things about the year 2020 – starting with my not being able to hug the folks I love. But today I choose to accentuate the positive.

  • ·        In the beginning my muse shut down and I didn’t want to paint or write – anything! So, I began surfing YouTube looking for diversion and inspiration. I found Caterina Giglio, a mixed media and collage artist. I was hooked and have done about a dozen mixed media pieces the past year. I have the mess of paper bits littering my studio to prove it.
  • ·           I wrote a new novel, My Friends from the Woods, which will come out probably in May. It is about a woman who discovered she has a Bigfoot family living in the forest next to her farm.
  • ·        I refinished a table.
  • ·        I wrote poetry.
  • ·        I found I was eligible for Medicaid and was able to have some long over-due dental work done.
  • ·        I haven’t had a cold or flu (did get my flu shot) this winter thanks to all the Covid precautions.
  • ·        After discovering Beaver Dam State Park was only 30 minutes away, I made frequent visits. Took lots of photos, met friends, and spent time alone writing and meditating.
  • ·        In October, my daughters threw me a birthday party with the family at the park. We had a fire in the fireplace under the picnic shelter, cooked hotdogs and hamburgers and it was the best birthday party ever!
  • ·        We did Christmas in multi-visits: one daughter at a time, wearing our masks and socially distancing, mostly outdoors. The weather wasn’t bad for December.
  • ·        Best of all, my daughters went way over the top making sure I stayed safe and had what I needed. Dineane, who lives close, picked up my mail and visited once a week. She took me to doctor and dentist visits. Julia and Deborah visited and helped with things around the house and yard and made regular phone calls which lifted my spirits when I got low.

My family and friends are such blessings. I would be a lonely mess without them. I’ve had my vaccines now and am looking forward to some day trips and having the “great grands” come for a weekend now and again. But I’ll still be cautious. I’ll wear my mask when I go out, do the handwashing, and keep my distance especially from folks outside my circle. That’s because there are still so many unknowns when it comes to the virus.

I am glad I made my list. The list helps me see some of the good in the midst of a time of fear and heartbreak. The news and social media often paint a negative picture with folks being selfish, whiny, and mean. That hasn’t been my experience. For the most part people have been kind, generous, and helpful. Maybe it has to do with my expectations; I like to see the best in folks.

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