Reading for Treasure: To Distance or Not to Distance - and What About Groceries?

Reading for Treasure is my list of articles that are worth your attention. Click here for an introduction. I had planned on having a version that did not focus on COVID-19 or the current situation, but then I read these articles and saw these videos. Maybe next month, we’ll focus on one television show you may or may not be watching (or if you aren’t, you should). Instead, here are some more topical information that is worth your attention:

It would be wonderful if everyone was social (now we say physical) distancing, but that isn’t happening. The Atlantic’s article, “We’re Not ‘All In It Together’” hits the nail on the head. It is a primer on “civic character” and social responsibility. Read it!

If we are trying to convince someone to follow the CDC guidelines and stay at home, this video might help – especially if they have a short attention span. This is a wonderful visualization of how social distancing can stop the virus from spreading from the State of Ohio and is well worth the little time it takes to watch.

If you want a simulation that is more detailed and personal, this video might work. This Canadian demonstration asks you to personalize the video by selecting avatars for yourself and others near you. It makes its point very clearly!

As we move further toward needing to reopen our economy, there are two concepts that keep coming up: testing and tracing. The Atlantic’s article, “The Technology That Could Free America From Quarantine” lays out other countries’ experiences with track and trace apps on people’s phones. Apple Insider goes into the problems with this concept and provides information on Apple and Google’s current efforts to create a platform for a track and trace app (or apps) in the United States: “Apple and Google’s Contact Tracing won’t stop COVID-19, But It Will Help.”

Finally, there have been a lot of videos and articles about how to bring groceries and take-out foods safely into your house. The Boston Public Television station, WGBH presents a less scary and more reasonable set of instructions: “No, You Don’t Need to Disinfect Your Groceries. But Here’s How to Shop Safely.”

Speaking of being on topic, I am currently reading Connie Willis’s The Doomsday Book and, although it was written in 1992, it is all about what is going on now – and it is an outstanding read!

When This Is Over...

When This is Over…

We will breathe, dance, run, prance,

And laugh, laugh, laugh, laugh

Physical distance won’t rule the way

We will connect, high-five, shake,

And the space between us will fill with friendship

We will embrace our neighbors, strangers, children,

And move without worry

We will touch, recover, hug each other

We will gaze together under the slightly larger asteroid from space,

And cry

We will wake with new vision, light, love, and faith

Within and without and between and about,

And the lights that have gone out

We still won’t like poetry

We will realize the line between need and want

How much we have,

And mourn

When the noise is gone,

And the lights have faded, the air has calmed

What will we have learned?

We will think twice before canceling plans to stay at home

We will learn to be fearless in the face of fear

Because our love for each other is stronger

We will be inclusive, joyful, and grateful

We will understand that a person’s worth is more than a paycheck or title

That everyone deserves health care and more than minimum

That retirement funds don’t trump well-being

Our planet will be graced with healing

Will we be who we were before?

Will we carry this experience for more than a moment?

Will we help the many people still hurting?

Will we take each other for granted?

Will we be happy with less, and willing to share?

Will we be ready to do this again?

Will we be still?

We will gather in restaurants and feed each other

Drink deeply, have date night, and get our hair done

Anybody want a peanut?

We will remember fear, sadness, strength, and peace

Meals with our families, Zooming together

Missing our teachers and students, learning at a distance,

And the power of art

We will get married,

And something else starts

We will remember when people asked us to share the first

Blue picture on our phones

We will no longer compare, divide, judge, and separate

We will take up the “vorpal sword” and fight the “slithy toves”

We will show some spine and shine

We will be political, civil, and responsible,

And we will admit when we were wrong,

And do better

We will all know how to wash our hands

The right way

We will have moments of life renewing change

We will have learned to savor the simple things

There will be a new normal

We will be proud of our choices and say, “This I did, this we did”

We will honor the heroes and be grateful

And see the world anew

  

Thank you to the poets who contributed to this piece: Chip Anderson, Matthew Aaron, Susan Adamo Baliles, Matt Barinholtz, Emily Anne, Hannah Benson, Eileen Berman, Christine Blevins, Sherri Bresn, Shenach Cameron, Roberta Cohen, Helen Crowley,  Marla Davis, Paul Degen, Allan Dorfman, Jessica Lensch Falk, Joel Finkle, Patricia Fragen, Abby Forman Gagerman, Susan Schaumberg Gorman, Audris Griffith,  Gerald Guglielmo, Leora Hatchwell, David Hirsch, Bevin Horn, Scott Horwitz, Debbie Hymen, Tracy Jacobson, Andrea Haynes Johnson, Maralyn Kolze, Audrey Cohn Levy, Eli Lovejoy, Susan Meredith, Suz Alaine, Ben Nick, Besflores Nievera Jr, Mary Vanderbeck Parker, Phil Patton, Julia Bauchner Roth, Marisa Roubik, Frances Salvato, Allison Grockis Schlender, Randy Schultz, Sheila Sebor, Jim Shepard, Danette Sills, Steven H Silver, Harry Steindler, Ryan Wiczer-Leist, and Marcy Wingard.

The story of this poem: Like our work to “flatten the curve,” this poem was a group project. It started as a post on Facebook. I asked my Facebook friends to write a list poem with me. I gave them the start, “When this is over…”  and they wrote beautifully!

All of their words form the word cloud image that accompanies the poem here. I took their words, found themes and repetitions, feelings and thoughts, and created this version of the poem. While not every phrase or sentence from every poet is included, I tried to include something from each poet’s contribution. I apologize if I have not done this as completely as some of the poets would want.

This poem does not have to be finished. Feel free to keep writing it – as a group, on your own, or any way that has meaning for you. It is not over.

Postivitiy is Powerful Medicine

My grandmother did everything wrong: She ate fatty, sugary foods. She never exercised. She didn’t smoke, but she enjoyed her whiskey sours and “happy time.” She was a cook and baker of the old school and she ate what she made. She lived a long and healthy life. For all but her last few months, she was not taking any regular medications, lived on her own, took the bus to the grocery store, and was completely “with it.” She passed away at ninety-eight years old.

Her family thinks we know her longevity secrets. We think we understand why she lived so long and so well: first, she was the most positive person we knew. Negatives glanced off of her. She did not ignore the problems and struggles but approached them with a can-do optimistic attitude that was powerful and infectious.

She was also the most social person I knew. I was aware as a teenager that, if I wanted my grandmother to come to my play, I had to give her the date months in advance. If I wanted to go to lunch with her and celebrate one of our birthdays, I had to be sure to call book early because her calendar was full! I was often amazed that everyone seemed to know my Nana – and not only know her, they burst into smiles when I told them that I was Esther Hirsch’s grandson, “Esther Hirsch! She is amazing!” I know.

As we hunker down and become socially distant, we need to remember these two lessons. The way we approach the world, our attitudes and outlook can shape more than just our mental state. Our connection with others and the community is a lifeline as much as any cold remedy.

As other older folks would outline their physical woes and pains, my grandmother would declare, “I don’t have any conditions!” She didn’t. She didn’t have medical conditions and she didn’t place lots of conditions on anyone. When her sons married, she welcomed their wives and their wives' parents, siblings, cousins, and anyone else who was important to them. Her embrace extended to all the people she loved and the people they loved. She cherished these relationships with dinners, parties, outings, and celebrations. She took no one for granted.

She didn’t text. She had no email. She called everyone. She knew what was going on with her brothers, their wives, and all the children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren! She saw everyone. Often I had to share her when we went out to eat. There were cousins from Los Angeles, children of a dear friend who had passed, a friend of a friend, and the neighbor from down the hall. She made no distinctions. Religion didn’t matter. Ethnicity didn’t matter. If you were loved by someone she loved, then she loved you – and now you were family.

As we face the COVID-19 virus separately in our own homes, I need to remind myself of my grandmother. We are not really alone. We can text, email, video chat, and call each other – and we must! We can wring our hands and worry and curse the doom and gloom, or we can take that energy and make positive choices. We can choose how we look at this.

I know my grandmother had down moments. When my aunt passed away, she kept saying how this was not the natural order of things. Life was not always rosy because she wore rose-colored glasses. She was aware of the struggles and the successes.

But she did not let those things color her worldview. Over and over, she would return from a funeral, wake, or shiva and extol the person who had passed and praise their family. When her friends passed away, she connected with and consoled their children. After all, they were all her family.

An optimistic attitude and the loving arms of friends are potent medicines. They can’t cure on their own and they won't replace the precautions we must take now, but they provide positive protection and power. We need all the time, but especially now.

Thanks, Nana. I miss you, and your presence is far more powerful than your absence.