It’s difficult to remember what day it is

I don’t know about you but I’m getting really tired of staying home. I’m learning the importance of routine as mine is so far off kilter that I have no idea what day it is. Thank goodness for newspapers. They feature not only the date but what day of the week it is.

I am not the only one who has scrapped their old routine for what has been called a new normal. It seems that people not only do not have the vaguest clue as to what day it is, they can’t tell a lawn from a tire drop off place. As of Saturday, a tire has been snuggled up between one of the lilacs and the edge of the garden bed that holds raspberries. There isn’t a trash can around, nor are there any signs that indicate that used tires should be left there.

I think it will be months before the virus restrictions begin to be eased. I’m afraid that once the first wave of people take off their masks and have a good sit down dinner or whatever constitutes normal, we will have a new group of patients filling our hospitals. I hope I’m wrong.

Earth Day is coming up on Wednesday, April 22. The first Earth Day was way back in 1970. In 1970 I was young and invincible. Environmentalists preached about impending doom if we didn’t start taking better care of the planet. Ironically, the aftermath of every Earth Day celebration I’ve seen features lots and lots of trash. One would think that people wanting big corporations to mend their wicked ways would clean up after themselves. 

In the ensuing years the Environmental Protection Agency has done a lot to protect the planet. It has also promoted some projects that caused more harm than good.

Then along comes a teensy, tiny killer called COVID-19, or coronavirus, or simply the virus. 

Most of us have never seen a virus. I know I haven’t. But this unseen menace has invaded every country in the world. Sometimes it kills people and sometimes it doesn’t. 

What it has done is alter our lives. We wear masks that may or may not deter the virus. There are mazes of caution tape outside of the stores. Dining rooms are roped off. Businesses close. People are out of work through no fault of their own.

The first amendment of our Constitution guarantees our right to “peaceably assemble,” but we are so afraid of catching the virus that we are wary of getting together. Our leaders tell us to stay home and avoid other people. We do, but the virus keeps on spreading, 

By giving up our right to assemble and following the guidelines given us to thwart the virus, we are experiencing cleaner air and water. The earth is rebuilding itself quicker than I expected. 

It won’t last, but it is reassuring to know that after we are long gone, this planet is capable of repairing itself.

Another benefit of the virus is that schools are closed. My daughter is not fond of trying to help her wiggly children do whatever homework that is required, but they get through it. Granddaughter Emma had obtained a role in the play her school was going to present. She confesses that she doesn’t have her lines memorized because she doesn’t expect school to start back up in the near future.

In place of formal school work the boys, Jacob and Nicholas, along with some of the cousins and an escaped stray neighbor boy, constructed a racecourse for their bicycles. It features several “hills” made of found pieces of wood. They tend to stop and walk the bikes over the top. So far nobody has broken any bones but that could change once they get up enough courage to fly over the challenges. In constructing the course they have learned practical skills such as working together along with planning and implementing a project. 

The virus has caused a great deal of upheaval but it also has allowed the earth to take a bit of a breather. Air and water are cleaner than they have been in a long time. Stories of unselfishness counteract the tales of grocery store madness. One of these days we will read an entire newspaper with no mention of a virus.

Until then, is anybody missing a tire?