What a radically different month, for us, and the whole world.
We have it very, very, easy. With the exception of the nursing the kids through a nasty chest cold that started in mid-March, and is still going on, life has been happy, pleasurable, and peaceful. We know that this is not the case for many people around the globe, so we make sure to feel and acknowledge our gratitude for all that we have.
The biggest gift we have is each other. We also feel like we were provided this perfect house to shelter in. It is full of soul, has plenty of space for us, and is perched on the edge of a beautiful lake where we can swim and play. We are near Mark’s mom and step-dad, and his brother and his family so we’ve been able to enjoy some socially-distanced visits. We have infrastructure around us so we can easily restock our fridge and pantry once a week. We have a backyard, dock, and neighborhood streets where we can play outside while keeping our distance from people.
While we originally planned to stay in this house for a month, as the reservation ending approached, we decided that we were so comfortable, and enjoying ourselves so much, that we would stay for another month. Plus, in mid-April, there still was so much unknown about the virus, infection rates, when things would re-open, testing availability, etc., that we felt like it was easier to keep waiting it out.
It was so different to watch Spring come while we stayed in one place, rather than blossom as we headed south. From our window and on our walks, we watched the leaves fill in on the trees. We watched the dogwoods blossoms open and fall. We watched the irises come up, and the lake fill with water as huge spring storms dumped rain. We watched the days grow longer and the moon wax and wane.
There are so many more hours in the day when we are not spending our time driving somewhere, running errands, meeting with people, or plotting where we were going to eat, do laundry, get gas, camp, and what museum we were going to visit or what hike we are going to do. With all that extra time, we’ve put a lot of focus on self-care. Mark and I are running almost everyday (and if you really knew me, you’d know I DO NOT run unless being chased), doing yoga/stretching, and getting some vitamin-D through the sunshine. We also were invited to do an online meditation retreat by one of Mark’s friends and colleagues, which we participated in and have since kept up the daily, one-hour meditation practice. We cook almost every meal at home, except for the days when we go out to pick up groceries.
It has been nice to have Mark’s mom and step-dad nearby. They are quarantined inside their senior living community, and cannot leave, even to get groceries. It has been nice that we can help with some of the grocery shopping, and that we get weekly visits with them. Even though our visits are across a fence and more than six-feet apart, it feels good to be able to visit in person. We’ve also had a few visits with Mark’s brother, Todd, and various members of his family. A highlight was playing kick-ball with them at a nearby park. They are bitter sweet visits as we really miss giving hugs and being able to just hang out and chat. Hopefully in the near future, we can all return to hugs and sitting around the bonfire together.
We found time to work with a web developer to create a new website for Mark’s non-profit business association, Cross Pollinate (cross-pollinate.org). It feels so good to have a website up and running, especially as his efforts of connecting families have resulted in an exciting opportunity to gather families to invest in a bio pharmaceutical company. This company needs captial to expand their ability to produce proteins for antibody tests and therapeutics for Covid, along with other important drugs like insulin. Mark is working hard, on the phone a lot, has a lot of emails that always need to be written and responded to, but he feels good about the project and the people he is working with, so that excitement keeps him going.
The girls are really enjoying the slowed of pace while here. They wake up in the morning and play a few online games, or they put on an audiobook and draw or color while listening to stories. When they tire of listening to stories, they will switch to playing with dolls. They are both taking a number of classes on the outschool.com platform. They recently completed a creative writing course using role-play games, and two classes on how to draw cats and dogs. P signed up for a six week book club to read the first Harry Potter book together. In class they discuss the book, do quizzes, and generally have a good time. T is reading the final Harry Potter book, so they both really enjoy pulling the characters and themes of the Harry Potter games into their imaginative play. They even took an intro to Latin course that used Harry Potter spells and character names to introduce Latin.
Every (sunny) afternoon, we all play on the dock and in the water. The house came with two kid-sized kayaks that the girls use to paddle around our cove. When the water is calm, Mark and I will take the canoe out and the girls will join us in the kayaks. Those jaunts are always highlights for me.
We have been surprised by the amount of animals there are in this area. The domestic cows and horses have been fun neighbors, and the girls enjoy feeding carrots to the horses every couple of days. We have also seen a lot of wildlife including osprey, heron, fish, fox, and two types of snakes (one swimming in the water!).
It feels so relaxing to know we are here for another few weeks, and a little strange to start thinking about where we go next. We are not sure where we go next, and a large part has to do with what happens as the country re-opens, what happens to infection numbers, and how can we travel safely without potentially becoming spreaders of the virus as we make our way back across the country.
But until then, we are enjoying our time here and taking full advantage of the slowness to stay healthy, support a great opportunity (the one that came through Mark’s business efforts), see family a few more times, and just enjoy not having to go anywhere.
