Like many of you, we captured almost five months together this spring. Luckily, our home and yard gave us room to breathe, unless, of course, we needed a Wi-Fi connection. Territories were marked, changed and fought over while sweet little nothings came from neighboring rooms, “Put on your headphones!” for volume offenders. The sink was, more often than not, filled with dirty dishes, the garbage over-flowing and we spent excessively on groceries. It was pure bliss, as only a family can appreciate.
On the brighter side, for three months we ate dinner together, every night. When outdoor dining opened in Fairfield we all went and looked forward to being on the outside together. As time went on and our circles slightly widened we ventured out with small friend groups in socially distanced backyard settings. The first outing at our neighbor’s fire pit had my heart racing, which as most of you know is not a good thing. Socializing had become an oddity if not down-right dangerous. We brought our own drinks, glasses and kept apart, but being together with friends, outside the family bubble felt peculiar.
Desperate for a change of scenery, our bubble traveled to Nantucket. For a brief time, we relaxed in Sconset, enjoyed the beach and a decent amount of outdoor dining. At home, things were not so peaceful. A storm caused five full days without power, limbs the size of trees were down all over our yard and a war zone of branches covered the ground. We came home to two freezers filled with spoiled food. Not surprisingly, a brand-new generator, (finally) sits in our garage.
For a lot of us, the past year has been rewarding in strange ways and challenging in others. We lost two family members at different times and for different reasons, (one of them Covid). Appropriately honoring their lives during a pandemic is impossible, which adds to the sense of loss.
When our lock down began in March, (a combination of the Twilight Zone and Swiss Family Robinson) we thought it would be temporary, perhaps two, maybe three months. And although we had some time to enjoy the warmer temperatures and distanced social interaction, the cold reality of a virtual world and the feeling of living on an island is returning. Now, at least there will be a plan.
We are hopeful for our future, with Biden as our incoming President and Harris as our first female Vice President! History is happening for sure. Our masked faces, sanitized hands and elbow bumps will likely continue for a while, but in a bright direction. Maybe someone will even empty the dishwasher.
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