Lockdown Week 11: National Uproar, Alan at the Office, and My Next Ebook

So how is everyone’s lock down going? Still feeling okay out there, in your own home?

I noticed that some of my Alabama friends went back to church this Sunday. I was like, “Say whaaa?” I can’t even imagine that yet here in Maryland. Because we move so much, my Facebook newsfeed represents people from all over the country, but mostly the South, the D.C. area, and California/Washington state. I am always surprised at how different life is in different states.

The variety of locations make for a fun read on Facebook. Georgia opened back up shops before Alabama, I think, but poor Alabama is the one having the surge in coronavirus cases.

One of my sons has firm opinions about all this, and it is funny because he does not get these opinions from Alan and me. Alan and I stay very busy and rarely even comment on the lock down situation. Alan literally does not have time, and I honestly sometimes forget that we are even in lock down. Day dreaming is my most special skill. It is a coping skill too. If you don’t let things bother you too much, you do live with more peace of mind and less heart problems.

I started to get excited about planning a Disney trip a month ago because I was just certain they would open by the end of summer. Being optimistic is my coping mechanism. Sure enough, they are opening this summer. Alan just started a new job though, so he is reluctant to leave for long enough to do Disney in addition to visiting grandparents and going to the beach. Alan dislikes Disney and takes germs very seriously in a normal year. I think Disney this year might actually give him an aneurism. No matter how many times the boys washed their hands, I don’t think Alan would ever believe they were truly clean.

I still want to go to Disney again soon though. I cannot explain why, but I seriously love it and feel so happy when I am there. Maybe we will wait until cooler weather though. It’s pretty hot to wear a mask outside.

By the way, Alan was NOT working at home for week 11. He actually went to his work building.

This greatly improved my stress level. We loved the idea of having Alan at home, but we didn’t see him when he was working at home anyway. While he was at home, he was literally ALWAYS in my bedroom, with two computer screens on, talking on his phone, and typing. If I went to my room, I had to be quiet. Most days he does not even leave that room for lunch. The boys or I bring him a lunch and a coffee. It’s like room service….but way less fun.

The Army, or I should say Alan’s corner of the Army, is heavily involved in the whole COVID19 thing. Plus, Alan is in the thick of his “command time,” a three year section of an Army officer’s career that they take very seriously. With him in my room, working around the clock, his stress felt like my stress. It was horribly draining. I mean, I hate that he has to deal with it either way, but at least with him back at the office, it does not also become my stress. At this very moment, I am peacefully sitting on my bed, at four-o’clock in the afternoon, which I haven’t been able to do in months, typing this up. Peace and quiet reigns.

Memorial Day

I know Memorial Day is not supposed to be about taking a day off and going to the lake, but man it was nice to do just that this year. We are so grateful for those who gave all for our country. As a military wife, I cannot watch anything remotely Memorial Day related without crying. It was just extra sweet to get that day off this year. We needed it so badly.

Only 2.5 Weeks of School to Go!

I am so excited about this. Hurrah! Hurrah! Hurrah! It’s been years since I felt this happy to see summer arrive. As a rule, I am not a big fan of sweaty, sticky summer, but this year is vastly different. Come on over, summer. Hop in my minivan. We are going to Alabama and Florida. We can lock down at my parents’ house just as well as we can lock down here.

I haven’t been this excited to see summer….since… well, since the last time I had to be the teacher. Ha! So much responsibility!

National Uproar

You can’t really talk about this particular week without mentioning the death of George Floyd. Whether you think he died as a result of racism or not, the fact is that he should not have died. Racism in America is also a fact. We all know that to be true. I remember when I enrolled as a freshman at the University of Alabama in 1999 how much racism I saw and felt because my roommate was black. The racism was towards her, not me, but I learned from it. Several different girls asked me, “So are you going to move, try to switch roommates?” No, of course I wasn’t. My roommate, Monica, was ideal. She was a wonderful, mature graduate student, and we had fun together. I could not have asked for a better roommate. We stayed friends for years. She sang the Lord’s prayer at my wedding in 2002.

In my college days, there was controversy over allowing anyone not white into the Greek sororities at UA. I read up on it the other day, out of curiosity, to see if that has changed. I looked at photos and read articles, but honestly, I did not see much change. A few sororities on Alabama’s campus have let in a few people of color, but I did not see many. I’m not trying to villainize the Greek system, but I am using it as an example. You cannot still have these social clubs that keep people out based on skin color and yet say racism in America is gone.

Please don’t send me emails defending the Greek system. I know people are actively trying to change it, and I have faith that they will eventually succeed. One of my best buds was in an Alabama sorority, and she would not agree with the keeping out of other races. She is a kind person, but even she will admit that it happens. Some sororities and fraternities are much worse about this than others.

But I’m chasing rabbit trails. I just wanted to say that I do hurt for the African American community, and I am doing my best to teach my children to treat everyone with equal love and respect. We are all created in the image of God. Underneath our different crayon colors of skin, we are all just people. We are people who were stressed already from the lock downs and are now stressed even more from the racism and the riots. My prayer for our country is that we keep improving in the way we treat one another and that we are able to get back to working together more closely soon.

I thought Will Smith’s quote was quite correct, “Racism is not getting worse, it’s getting filmed.”

Jesus said everything best.

“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

Matthew 22:36-40

I hope you all have a happy week. I’m working on a project, my next e-book, called “5 Days of Finding Joy in a Pandemic.” This one will be free to all of my blog subscribers. I’m hoping to have that finished and available in just a couple of weeks. I’m thinking “5 Days” because I think I can get 5 days done so much quicker than 10, and you can read it quicker too, but I’ve drawn up a draft cover, back when I was planning it to be 10 days. Here’s a sneak peek at the draft cover:

I will let you guys know when I have it all finished up! Thanks for reading!