End of the tunnel ...

Just finished editing the account of the Covid 19 pandemic, aka Damncovid, that my friend/cousin and I wrote during the times -- from 2020 through 2023. Phew... it was a job... interesting. Many of you may recall reading in this blog some time ago that we began this "project" to record the stories of two rural Nanas and their families during the pandemic.  As it stands now, the audience will be limited to current family and to generations on down the line.  It is a universal story, yet personal as well.

Anyway -- we wrote daily, communicating via email.  I wrote in the mornings, she in the evenings -- each sharing the events of our lives and feelings, including some fears and confusion as we worked our way through the challenges of living in and through a pandemic.  Needless to say our experiences may differ from yours, but I am thinking that they share common issues as well.  We both agree that the writing helped us get through those times the way hoped we would. We had positive goals. We helped each other. We consider ourselves and our families to be very fortunate. We are thankful.

Although the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services declared the COVID-19 Pandemic officially over as of May 11, 2023 , many of us in rural America felt the end much earlier and transitioned away from emergency procedures well before for that time.  In fact… many of us were able to live relatively normal lives during the three years preceding the official end. Some of us did not play the game at all or played only when it was deemed unavoidable or in respect of other people's fears. I think, in some ways, that rural America felt sorry for city dwellers ... even the ones who look down on us  -- thinking that their way of life is somehow better. Ironic, isn't it?

Also important to remember is that all lives across the entire world  were touched in some way by the pandemic.  Many were touched in a close, painfully personal way with loss of loved ones and friends. Other lives were forever changed by the fears of the pandemic – many of which were exaggerated by those in leadership as they struggled to control an independent thinking populace. The pandemic had a vast array of side-effects including separating friendships and dividing families. The distrust of authority, medicine, and government bubbled above the surface and continues to seep and spread. Tragic on so many levels. Such sad side-effects are a part of a pandemic story for sure even though they are, perhaps, overlooked to some degree. For example, there is a tendency for some not to remember that they wanted to put the non-vaxed (of which I am one) into concentration camps and that they basically treated/shunned them like they had serious cooties and were responsible for the ills of the whole world. 

Anyway -- Our chronical of those times runs from March 13, 2020 to mid 2022.  It is long; it is a reminder; it is a story of coming out at the other end of the tunnel, perhaps a bit bumped and bruised, but nevertheless stronger, and hopefully more compassionate, kinder people... thankful to be survivors.  

We are playing with titles. They are...  View from Two Porches and the more sarcastic Two Weeks to Slow the Spread. The second title suggested by my son.  Having a hard time deciding.  Ideas?

One note...  it is amazing how much time softens.  Many struggles even get pushed way back into dark, hide to find, corners.  Perhaps, though, it is good to remember all the parts.  Perhaps remembering helps to explain the current insanity of the world... people reacting to being forced into isolation or to being pressured to take an experimental drug inaccurately labeled a vaccine... a decision that more and more people now seriously regret. Many current, demonstrators are caught up in rebellion for the sake of rebellion. Ignorant as they are,  they now feel empowered to force their opinions on others - and also believe that they have the right to interfere and complicate the day to day lives of others. Is this because they saw the government get away with such behavior? Wish I knew how to make things better. Perhaps writing and documenting will help in the long run.  Hope so. 

One thing I do know -- I hope none of us ever have to go through a pandemic again. Another thing I know... I am sick and tired of angry screamers and hateful faces. I am also bored with the lack of sense of humor and humanity of those particular woke who think they have some "special" kind of awareness that gives them rights above others ... that somehow entitles them to condescend to those who may disagree with them on the issues of the day. 

It is time to move forward and put the tunnel behind. We need to see that there is light at the other end.  We need to begin again and to remember who we are and who we want to be. We need to listen and to think. 

What Year is this?

 

·             Americans are craving peace and security.

·         Unrest boils and seethes across the world.

·         People cross boarders illegally – some them with ill intent.

·         A Pandemic reappears - now in its third year.

·         Terrorists abound throughout the world.

R        Racism is a wide spread.

          The government blacklists people in many devious ways to silence.

·         A President, unfit for office, is protected by those around him.

·         Destructive riots cause harm to innocent people.

·         Workers unite and strike across the county.

·         People have become disillusioned.

          The government no longer serves the people.

T

The year described above is 1919.  

Does it sound familiar to you?

Now here’s the thing that is especially hopeful.  In the election of 1920, the American voter all across the country, tired of the “Progressive” Democratic Party, voted a lot of them out of office with a Presidential candidate of the opposing party taking over 60% of the vote. 

It’s time, perhaps, for history to repeat itself.  Sometimes that kind of repetition is a good thing.  

It’s time to start thinking about what you want as a voter and the election in 2024. Think of someone who can do the job you want done. 

 

Sticks and Stones...

 

Please bear with me....  I wrote a couple of weeks ago about aspects of language not to be ignored.  Since then, a few more examples have become popular, and I want to mention them.  There is power in word choice.  There is potential danger in that power. Remember that old adage: "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me"?  We all know that that is not true.  Words do hurt. Perhaps more realistic is: "Stones and sticks break only skin, while words are ghosts that haunt me." Personally, I would capitalize the H in haunt.

Consider the difference between your mental and emotional responses to the following...  "kids in cages" vs "unaccompanied minors in soft-sided structures", or “crisis” vs “challenge”.  Also, noticeably popular in past weeks -- "illegal aliens" vs "noncitizens" or “crybaby” vs “crybully”.  I am thinking that you definitely see and feel the differences. Why is this important? It is important because... word choices make a difference. Words may be and are used to manipulate thinking. One more serious example that piques curiosity ... why is something called a "Covid Relief Bill" when only 9% or so of the “relief” actually goes toward the “damncovid” situation?  It's a thought-provoking example of word choice as a smoke screen; isn't it?

Remember everyone -- we are not "lemmings to the sea".  (By the way -- that is a myth.  Lemmings are not stupid. These little hamster-like creatures do not rush together and hurl themselves off cliffs in waves of furriness.)  Neither, by the way, are we "unable to see the forest for the trees" as some seem to enjoy believing as they look down and smirk from where they perch above. 

Sometimes I think we get so caught up in trying to adapt and survive that we let things slide or don't pay close enough attention. Plus the fact – most of us are exhausted on some level from living during a pandemic in combination with political upheaval. Now is not the time to let things slide though.  Actually, there is never a time to do that. Keep your eye on Amazon and its new "silent but deadly" book banning. It smells bad to me. 

This mentality is seemingly spreading everywhere.  Just think about Mr. Potato Head and Dr. Seuss if you think I am overreacting.  Play-Doh could be the next target. 

No matter on what side of an issue you are -- no matter to whom you listen or what you believe, it is wise to listen carefully and to "see" the power of language.  Cherish your freedom of speech and that of others. Cherish your independence of thought and uniqueness as an individual. Respect that independence and uniqueness in others. Be word wise.

A closed and small-minded "cancel culture" of any sort is evil. Stand strong. Be mindful. Listen to others. Think. See. Push back. We are all in this together, even though, at times, it may not seem like it. Never forget ... your individual thoughts matter… and so do those of others with whom you may not always agree. Exchange ideas. Talk with others.

You know all of this, I know, but… I just had to write about it.  You are important; so am I. Everyone is. The ideas of an individual are important… so is the voice of each individual. Don’t let these freedoms be taken away from you.

"The smallest minority on earth is the individual.  Those who deny individual rights cannot claim to be defenders of minorities." (Rand)

Enough now....