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Blogging, Buddhism, Community, COVID-19, Environment, Faith, Family, Friendship, Heart, Home, Humanity, Living in Hawaii, Marathon training and running, Middle Age, Parenting, Philanthropy, Quakerism, Teaching
Aloha Readers of Tennis, Trisomy 21 and Taking in Life Together!
I hope you are all safe and well. I love when you respond to my blog, so please feel free to share if you wish.
Speaking of sharing, my daughter overshared a bit this fine Sunday which is one of the lows of this week’s version of sheltering in place during the pandemic!
My list of other dim moments but also highlights is below in no particular order.
Low Lights
1) The aforementioned parenting moment. As many readers of this blog know, my daughter was born with an extra chromosome. She is smart, sensitive, and beautiful. She just turned 10. I’m sure most parents struggle with establishing boundaries. I usually have a good sense of humor about trying to, but this morning during remote faith services, one for the Buddhists and the other for the Quakers, my daughter repeatedly told her Zoom faith companions how much she loved them and overshared details about her 4th-grade friendships. I groaned. I’m still groaning.
2) A wonderful photographer ending his blog. For about a year I have followed https://thephoblography.blog/ and have looked forward every day to seeing a picture taken and posted by Dave Bignell that has inspired me to move forward in my life with more appreciation and sensitivity. Because of Dave and his pictures, I have striven for more as a poet and prose writer, heck for that matter as a human being! Last night, Dave announced he was ending his blog. Although Dave and I live in different continents and I have never met him in person, we have corresponded. He is a generous, easily accessible artist with talent that is astonishing. I am sad, but hopeful that he has been awarded a $1 million book contract!
3) A medical procedure next week. It’s relatively minor, and of all the places on earth right now, Hawaii at this time is probably the safest place to spend a few hours in a hospital and then go home. But I did shed a tear after my obligatory COVID-19 test today to confirm my safety and those whom I will be around during the procedure. I’ve been a healthy guy all my life who loves the outdoors, and even after a few months it still boggles my mind that I no longer trust the air I breathe. And I fear that may become the new normal.
High Lights
1) Not giving up my hope of completing an marathon in July. As noted in the paragraph above, if ever there were a place to run a marathon early this summer, Hawaii would be it. If I do go ahead with this, I will savor every moment because this may be my last marathon for a while. The official event has flexible starting times, very likely no more than 80 or so entrants, and a course with plenty of room to move around, all of which makes me feel hopeful about social distancing. I can’t imagine that the marathon for which I am registered in December, the fourth largest in the United States, will take place, and even if it did, I would not take part. It just wouldn’t be worth losing sleep over. But training for a goal, in this case finishing my 29th marathon, has helped me stay fit during the pandemic even if I’m a much slower runner than I was a half year ago!
2) Working from home. First, I’m grateful to have a full-time job I love. Second, I’m getting used to working from home! While I would much rather see people in person, I’ve had pretty great phone conversations, email correspondence, even Zoom meetings for my work in philanthropy and as a teacher. In many ways I feel like I’ve been more focused. It helps that I have a supportive boss and a brilliant, kind, patient husband.
3) The earth beneath my feet. I have a Friend (a fellow Quaker) whom I’ve gotten to know better this year. We spoke for about an hour this week. A refrain for both of us was a sense of wanting more certainty in life, a precious commodity right now. I keep thinking about one of the reasons I love training for marathons is that feeling my feet touching the ground! I need a great deal of order in my life, and I’m fortunate to have it even during the pandemic. It was my turn to be a good listener for my friend, to offer advice without rushing in to give her all the answers.
What have been some of your highs and lows? I look forward to reading them. Please stay safe and in good health and spirits.