I like doughnuts in my mouth.
I like margaritas in my mouth.
I like fresh berries in my mouth.
I like those cinnamon candy disks in my mouth.
What I don’t like in my mouth are words that other people put in there.
Yeah, I’ll spit those bad boys out faster than kale.
I say a lot of things.
Stupid things.
Humorous things.
Serious things.
Snarky things.
Even sweet things.
And I stand behind what I say. After all, I think about what I say before I say it. Granted, the first thing that pops into my head is usually the funniest or the snarkiest, but it is a rare occasion that a thing like that makes it onto my social media.
It’s usually a case of:
“type type type type”
<think>
“delete delete delete delete”
Between the Coronavirus and an election year, I’ve been typing and deleting a lot. Actually, it’s more like type, copy/paste into new document, save on hard drive, delete intended post.
Folks, the thoughts have to go somewhere.
And really, I am totally okay with people who don’t agree with me. Always have been. I don’t expect everyone to agree with me on everything, nor have I found anyone in my lifetime that I agree with wholeheartedly on every topic. What a horribly boring world it would be if we all agreed on all of it. I just ask (hope) for polite, respectful conversation.
It’s a BIG ask, lately.
We are in such a hurry to blame and point fingers and twist words and comments to suit a narrative nowadays.
Discussions get derailed so horribly that you think you’re in that train scene from “The Fugitive.” You half-expect to see Harrison Ford emerging from the train wreck of a discussion saying, “I didn’t kill my wife.”
So, when it comes to my posts re: the Coronavirus, allow me to be crystal clear:
I don’t want the madness over so I can go eat a restaurant or drink in a bar; I don’t want it over so I can take off my mask; I don’t want it over because I miss sporting events or concerts; I don’t want us, as a nation, to move beyond the current restrictions because I have climbed upon my soapbox, megaphone in hand, stomping my foot and declaring that
“I WANT TO DO A THING!”
No, not at all. I mean, I miss those things, yes. And sure, I look forward to doing those things again, but it’s more than that. So much more. And it’s not about ME.
It’s about the effect this is having on humankind.
My mother in law is the sweetest woman you’ll ever hope to meet. Not a mean bone in her body. Not even a snippy or harsh bone. Sugar pales in comparison to this lady.
She resides in an assisted living facility because she has dementia. She is still functioning at a high level and enjoying things likes art and cards and games. Well, that is until recently.
Like most of our elderly population in assisted living facilities, she’s been on lock down since March. No visitors. Those that “see” her do so through the glass of her bedroom window.
Other than phone calls, she has nothing to look forward to.
Her view never changes.
But her health certainly has.
She is lethargic, at times unresponsive. She has lost her zeal for life. She can’t travel. She can’t go to her daughter’s house. She can’t hug her grandkids. She can’t have visitors. She’s lost her appetite. She doesn’t even want to come to her window. The life she enjoyed, just the being with family and friends, is no more.
And she’s not alone. The stories of people like my dear MIL will keep you reading into the night. So many stories of isolation and anxiety and questions of “what is it all for?”
And not just the elderly, but the young as well.
These are times that break the heart and shatter the spirit.
So make no mistake when I call for a sense of perspective regarding the crisis we are in; a sense of caution rather than panic. Do not confuse my desire to regain some sense of normalcy with “being selfish.”
For if we don’t, I fear just as much will be lost “because” of the virus as “from” it.
(Also, Harrison Ford did NOT kill his wife in the movie. And don’t give me the “I haven’t seen it and now you spoiled it!” It’s a 27 year-old movie. If you haven’t gotten around to seeing it by now, you probably never will.)
(Also, also…Tommy Lee Jones’ performance is worth the watch even knowing Harrison Ford didn’t kill his wife. Look. I did it again.)
Hey Missy
Let’s just hope the madness is over sooner than later, and I feel mad for your dear MIL.
Meant to sad bad not mad. Lol
Didn’t it turn out that Tommy Lee killed Ford’s wife, or was that a different movie?
My 93 yr old mother is in the same situation as your mother-in-law. Having all her faculties means that she remembers what she’s now missing. She just bought an electric scooter (heh, almost said chair) so she can now terrorize the neighbors which must provide hours of entertainment.