When the World Stopped

When the world stopped…

I stocked the pantry.

I prayed.

I cried.

I called my girlfriends.

We rationed toilet paper.

I watched the news.

I cleaned closets and bagged stuff for Goodwill.

I let the rest of the house go.

We made chocolate chip cookies and oatmeal scotchies and a chocolate toffee cheesecake.

I forgot to bake the crust of our Reese’s peanut butter pie.

Now my pants don’t fit.

I zoomed my friends.

I zoomed my family.

I am ‘teaching’ online school to my children.

I log on to 3,000 websites and zoom meetings for school every week.

We have school supplies and books across every flat surface in the house.

I’m still not caught up on emails.

I stopped watching the news.

We planted our garden.

We researched how to grow potatoes and sweet potatoes.

The trees flowered and the sweet-smelling buds turned to leaves.

I trained for a virtual half marathon.

I strained my calf.

Now I take walks.

We instituted Takeout Tuesday.

We delivered food for families who need it.

I wear a mask to the grocery store.

I read Untamed. Three times.

Now I’m reading Fierce, Free, and Full of Fire. Again.

We played cards. And board games.

We fought over Monopoly.

We attempted a 1,000-piece puzzle but I couldn’t have it on the counter for even ONE MORE DAY.

We watch episodes of The Office on repeat.

We laughed.

We bickered.

We yelled.

The boys played waaaaaay too many video games.

The boys fought over pick-up games of basketball.

Some days we are all verrrrrrrry tired of family time.

And some nights I cry quietly to myself in the bath.

I binge-watched ALL 65 episodes of Home Town.

We hiked.

We biked.

One kid has a skinned-up nose from a crash.

Another kid had five days of fever and now a lingering a cough (somehow his coronavirus swab was negative).

We lost our dog.

We are thrilled we found her.

I cried over both events.

We painted pictures and chased bubbles and played with playdoh.

The kids shot each other with squirt guns.

We left encouraging messages on the sidewalk with chalk.

We watched larvae turn to pupae turn to ladybugs on our daily walks.

We hunted for snails.

I am sad. And grateful.

I am filled with despair. And hope.

I cry.

I laugh.

And every day I pray.

I’ve never felt so connected.

I really can’t wait to get back to normal.

But I am a little suspicious I don’t want to get back to normal.

Right now the world is stopped…

Yet life continues on somehow.