I’d love to say that I’ve been in a warm southern destination for the last four days soaking up the sun while handsome bare-chested male waiters fed me fresh fruit and Margueritas. Alas, that would be a stupid choice right now.
The closest I’ve come to being waited on in the last five weeks of the “stay at home” rules is when my cat, King Louis, plunks down in the middle of the kitchen floor licking his butt as he “waits on” me to give him treats.
Easter weekend provided a four day reprieve from work and I can’t remember the last time I’ve had that many days off in a row and stayed home for all of them. I loved it.
Of course I say I loved staying home, as parents of young children who’ve been together 24-7 for the last five weeks have discovered broom closets double as escape pods for adult sanity.
Over my four day weekend I baked bread and hamburger buns and apple tarts, barbecued a steak, grilled a burger, broiled shrimp, popped popcorn, had brownies with my coffee each morning, snuffed down more than a few snacks of cheese and crackers, and cooked up homemade chicken vegetable soup worthy of first prize.
In other words, I did nothing but prepare enough food for a family of six and ate it all myself. Oh, yes, I did get out for a walk to stretch my legs and give my heart something to thump about besides the excitement of second helpings and the joy of binge watching Season 3 of ‘Ozark’ on Netflix.
When I was thinking too much and feeling sorry for myself, I perseverated about physical touch. (No, not that kind of physical touch) - I mean the hugging kind, the warm fuzzy long embraces of wrapping arms around a loved one and just “being” - the same warm hearted gesture I suddenly realized happened every five minutes in every movie I watched this weekend. “Smite me, oh mighty Smiter!” I moaned.
I even went so far as to leap on an idea one of my friends had for those of us who live alone during the “stay at home” festival. Hug a tree in place of a human. How brilliant is that!
I rigged up a platform outside for my iPhone in the evergreen forest, set the camera timer for 10 seconds and hugged a tree repeatedly for 25 minutes until I got the shot I was looking for.
I texted the picture to my family members with love and hugs and I felt better - until Daughter #3 reminded me of a clip from the 1999 movie “Superstar” involving a tree and the main character, Mary Katherine Gallagher (Molly Shannon) hugging and kissing it, and carrying on a naughty conversation with the tree bark. Thankfully I’m not quite THAT desperately lonely yet.
Nonetheless. I am reminded of American writer Dave Barry who penned, “Magnetism is one of the six fundamental forces of the Universe, with the other five being gravity, duct tape, whining, remote control, and the force that pulls dogs toward the groins of strangers.”
In my world, Magnetism is that man, Mr G, whom I haven’t been able to lay my hands on in more than 30 days. I miss him very, very much.
Yet in light of such mind-boggling Covid 19 statistics on this April 13th evening of more than 1.9 million cases worldwide, U.S.A. tipping the scales at 582,000, and Canada at nearly 26,000 cases of its own, I cannot possibly snivel about having to stay home and stay safe - because right now I am grateful for my health and for the health of my loved ones, and I pray the same for the entire Borderland area in which I am privileged to live.
Above my writing desk is a framed verse that reads:
“There is a destiny that makes us brothers,
None goes his way alone.
All that we send into the lives of others,
Comes back into our own.”
Gratitude for the small things. Sometimes it is enough to get us through.
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