Life in the Slow Lane

Contemplating life, faith, words, and memories

Tag: Coronavirus

Not the April I Expected — April 29, 2020
April, Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival, Woodburn Tulips, tulips, flowers, tractor

Not the April I Expected

/Sherrey Meyer/15 Comments
No, this is not the April I expected. And it’s likely not the April you expected either. 
 
We looked forward to March Madness, an indicator April and spring training are ahead. Golf fans looked forward to the Masters Tournament at Augusta and a chance to see Amen Corner. We wanted to go to church on Easter Sunday. People planned outings to Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm (see image above) for the 2020 Tulip Festival. Sorry, folks, not this year.
 
This is the first time I can remember Holy Week when we haven’t gathered at our church on Maundy Thursday. Nor gather on Good Friday to commemorate the crucifixion of Jesus and his death at Calvary.
 
What happened on Easter Sunday, the day we celebrate Christ’s resurrection? Ordinarily, music by brass instruments and the choir singing start the service. Often there is also a children’s choir somewhere in the service. The singing of beautiful hymns offering the message of Easter is a favorite part of the service for me. This Easter the sanctuary was quiet. 
 
We were told to stay home. After all, we are in an elite age group at high risk in this time of the pandemic. And if not at home, we were to stay at least six feet apart. How do you hold church services under these circumstances?
 
Enter Zoom and Facebook Live. We have been virtually worshipping together since March 15, 2020, a total of seven weeks. I miss gathering with the community of believers at our church, hearing the choirs and musicians, and coffee fellowship after the service.
 
Here we are in the last week of April. All around flowers are blooming. Trees budding, rain showers falling, hummingbirds humming, bees buzzing, and more. It still isn’t the April I expected. 
 
With May arriving on Friday, Oregon’s pandemic guidelines loosed two restrictions. The first is the performing of elective surgeries in hospitals and clinics.
 
Also, dental offices may reopen. Yet, dentists countered by noting the risk to staff and patient. Powerful dental equipment in the mouth forces saliva and moisture into the air. In turn, this increases the risk of spread of the coronavirus. We still have a curve to flatten here and this wouldn’t be helpful.
 
With the departure of April, May sits on the horizon expecting some planting to happen. But currently, with our age keeping us away from nurseries and garden shops, we have nothing to plant. Looks like it will be a late planting this year. It’s a wait-and-see proposition.
 
How about you? Was this the April you expected? And will May meet your expectations? Just something to ponder.

Ponder, Proverbs 4:26, path, beach

 

Featured image attribution: Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm

 

Prescription for Cabin Fever — March 18, 2020
cabin fever, log cabin, cabin

Prescription for Cabin Fever

/Sherrey Meyer/13 Comments

Experiencing a bit of cabin fever? Government restrictions related to the coronavirus bugging you? Looking for a quick cure for cabin fever? Keep reading! 

Today we bring an expert to the blog to share tips for coping with cabin fever. Our expert has four years or more under her belt of being confined. Chronic pain has been her nemesis, but her tips will apply as well to cabin fever patients.

Here’s a list of helpful tips and hints for coping with the frustrating symptoms associated with cabin fever:

  1. Grab a good book and start reading. Need help finding a book? Check out book descriptions and reviews on Goodreads.
  2. Do a jigsaw puzzle. It may seem a bit old-school, but they can be lots of good fun unless you have cats who want to help!
  3. Schedule a movie and popcorn night. Especially popular if you have children around.
  4. Call a friend or two you haven’t touched base with in a while.
  5. Get out some board games or a deck of cards.
  6. Sort through old photos.
  7. Try a new hobby, like knitting, crocheting, stained glass, writing poetry, or Sudoku.
  8. Pour through cookbooks looking for a new recipe to try out.
  9. Start pre-spring cleaning. That way you won’t have so much to do when the good weather arrives.
  10. That home improvement project you’ve been postponing is something you could work on.
  11. How about adult coloring? Check out these sites for good resources to get you started: Johanna Basford, Colorit, Art Is Fun!, and The Spruce Crafts.
  12. If you’re a TV watcher, catch the newest season of your favorite show on Netflix.
  13. Begin researching family history and start a family tree.
  14. Plan a weekend getaway for after the restrictions are lifted.
  15. Enjoy reading aloud rather than alone and silently? Maybe this is a good family activity if you have young readers.
  16. Get some form of exercise. If you can get outside and continue social distancing, take a short walk, say 15 minutes. Or perhaps you have some slightly never used exercise equipment you could put to good use. 
  17. Continue to engage your faith or spiritual life through reading and/or prayer, or both.
  18. Think about that spring garden. Perhaps it’s time to draw up a plan for what you want to plant and how.
  19. Give in to that power nap. It’s amazing how much that few minutes improves your attitude.
  20. Try meditation.
  21. Plan and treat your family to a picnic. Cook up hamburgers and hot dogs and all the fixings. Then spread a cheerful tablecloth or blanket on the floor and get out the paper goods and plastic forks and knives. Add some chips and condiments and have fun!
  22. If you’re a writer, try writing in a different genre than usual.

And lastly, remember to practice kindness even if you are self-quarantined with your family–may be just you and your partner or spouse, and maybe a few kids, or some other configuration of family. Spread kindness even in these different and difficult times.

kindness, quotation, cabin fever

Image attributions:
Featured image: David Mark from Pixabay 
Quotation: Random Acts of Kindness