April 2 – Day 16 of Our COVID-19 Adventure
Some Things Stay the Same No Matter What
In 1994, Jerry, the kids, and I moved to Sardinia. I was so excited. Sardinia is a small Italian island in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea. My life was about to be both exciting and exotic, but above all, it was going to be DIFFERENT.
And it was and it wasn’t. The water isn’t potable on Sardinia and so we learned to cook and brush our teeth with bottled water. I learned how to hang clothes out on a clothes line. We learned how to survive 115 degree and up temperatures with no air conditioning. We also learned how to manage heating our house with two small propane heaters during the winter.
Life there was different, no doubt, but it was remarkably the same. Laundry and meal preparation were all still on the list of daily chores. Entertaining the children (with only grainy Italian TV reception…ever watch Power Rangers in Italian? I have.) was a constant in my life.
Today, I was reminded of our time in Italy because today, in spite of all the crazy news reports of how our world is upside down right now, was wine day. I had a chore to do that wasn’t going to go away because of a virus. And so I vigorously stirred the six gallons of Pinot Grigio for almost 10 minutes total. All the additives were added and the process of clarification (dead yeast falling out of suspension) began. In a week or so, it will be time to bottle the wine…another chore I have done countless times in the past.
Chores are sometimes something that I put off because, seriously, the laundry can wait another day, right? I am finding that chores, and especially their completion, are making me feel more in control and happier right now. Psychologist would tell me that this is because making progress makes the brain happy and that feeling in control helps to make the world not seem so scary.
I agree wholeheartedly. I can’t do any more for this pandemic than to stay at home, but for me, I can continue to find chores and little projects that at least give a modicum of control (or the illusion of it) over my life back to me. And no, it isn’t desperate here at all. In fact, if we leave the television and our phones off, I wouldn’t know that anything was amiss. That would be a mistake, I think, because there is something going on and I am a part of it (*read John Donne’s Meditation 17 for a basic primer on how we are all connected).
One Project/Experiment Was a Surprise!
Above are the before and after photos of my attempt to repair the veneer my attempt to repair the veneer on the old seating from the Mertens Baptist Church. Surprise!! Water for the win!! It worked. Next, I think I will add some wood glue to help hold it in place. I’ll sand it and then stain and poly the seats. Another project will be moved to the “complete” column instead of the “to do” list!
It is a Jungle at Our House
Actually, it is more like Jurassic Park. You may remember that we bought baby chicks a couple of weeks ago. They are still too young to put outside and it is also too cold for them to be outside. That means they are in the house under a heat lamp. I’m okay with it. We clean out their box daily and we hope that we are “socializing” them so that they won’t be evil chickens.
Been there, done that.
At any rate, today, one of the little darlings starting really cheeping and throwing a fit. She had escaped the box and was wandering around lost and calling for help. It was Jerry to the rescue, I was too busy capturing the moment so I could share it with JW and Izzy. They love the little chickies.
I am glad that this little chickie decided to chirp and let us know she was in distress. It made it easy to know that something was wrong and we found her immediately. Not everyone chirps loudly when they are in trouble, and folks, there are people who are really feeling this pandemic. Whether it is an extrovert who is missing human contact, someone worried about their health or finances, or an empathetic person who feels the weight of the world, people need people.
Reach out and find them…y’all take care of each other.