Plan for things to look forward to

Remember back when we were able to make plans?

Back about the first of March, for instance, when it still seemed possible to talk about a spring break trip to Florida or a retirement celebration trip to Italy or even just a jaunt over to the Chocolate Moose for a patty melt.

Back when it was still possible to plan for a high school graduation party.

Back when that visit to your great aunt’s house was still on the calendar.

Planning — at least immediate planning — has been one of the casualties of COVID-19. And it’s going to take awhile to resuscitate it.

A few weeks on my desk calendar tell the story.

One week, back about mid-March, the calendar was full of meetings and events: A school board meeting, the Ag Day breakfast, a St. Patrick’s Day performance at Miller’s Merry Manor with George Lopez and Arnold Clevenger, an Arts Place board meeting and more.

Now, the same week is a series of black scratches. I marked out event after event as they were canceled or postponed.

And the weeks that followed in the calendar? They are simply blank.

Nothing scheduled. Almost nothing on the agenda. And nothing planned.

That Rotary program I was supposed to provide April 29 has evaporated.

A Portland High School Class of 1966 gathering at a Fort Wayne TinCaps baseball game on a Sunday in early May has disappeared into the mist.

A son-in-law’s commencement exercise at Indiana University for his master’s degree has gone missing.

What all of those events had in common, of course, is that they were gatherings, events where people could get together and unknowingly transmit the coronavirus to one another, everyday events that could have deadly consequences for our friends and relatives.

But they were something more.

They were something to anticipate. And a sense of anticipation — dreaming about a future event — is something that sustains the human spirit. It can keep us going even when times are bleak.

A birthday party, a reunion, a festival, a date, all of them were something to look forward to. Maybe that’s the key phrase in these difficult times: “Something to look forward to.”

That’s what the moment calls for, and maybe it’s the best way to deal with COVID-19 head-on.

Look forward to something.

Plan.

Put something on the calendar with red letters or a star beside it.

Start scheduling those family reunions in July that should have happened in June. Sketch out a trip to the grandchildren for Thanksgiving. Buy those concert tickets for the Jay County Fair. Start planning some play dates for the kids at the swimming pool.

Re-book that trip to Italy for your wife’s retirement celebration.

Thumb your nose at the virus. Be safe, but don’t let it rule your future.

Let anticipation of a better day help you get through the day ahead.

Plan for it.