I heard a disturbing interview on public radio a few days ago. Someone discouraging people from gathering said something like, “An infection now is a hospitalization in mid-December is a death at Christmas.” A sobering thought for sure.
Then I read that it’s not home gatherings that are driving the epidemic but “ wider forces” that can be traced to poor government policy.
Maybe we just don’t know what’s driving the pandemic. Maybe there’s just too much contagion out there for any of us to completely avoid it.
Therefore keep a safe distance. Therefore mask. Therefore stay home as much as possible.
In any case, we kept our Thanksgiving at home. We fixed a traditional meal and did a lot of dishes. Then we zoom called my in-laws, FaceTimed my brother and his family and used yet another service to video call my mother.
My mother was suffering confusion from the effects of isolation. When I came on she thought I was asking about her deceased ex-husband. And yet after a half hour of interaction with me and the family she returned to her old self. That call wasn’t a real visit but it was much better than nothing.
I find myself grateful for technology on this lonelier than usual Thanksgiving.
I made my favorite traditional dishes…the house smell like it should on Thanksgiving. Called my mom in assisted living and Facetimed with a granddaughter in medical school who lives in France. We talked about Covid of course and her family. I was alone but didn’t feel alone, thanks to the computer and smart phone apps and the telephone. We are maybe more connected than we usually are because the pandemic, which has claimed more lives than all our wars since the Civil War, has made us all aware of the need for community. This will not be repeated next November and we will have lots of things to talk about around the table November 2021.
It’s good to hear the basic optimism behind this comment. Life goes on during the pandemic, and life will return to normal after the pandemic.