The Long Sorrow

This is day #134 of the Long Sorrow.

I call it the Long Sorrow not because I have been deprived of my precious routine and activities, but because so very, very many have been deprived of their precious lives. And because many more people are now dying, and will die, largely because Donald Trump and his Republican cronies do not care. 

My husband and I are older now, with  those famous "underlying conditions," so we began quarantining on the 12th of March, and we have not really stopped.  I have groceries delivered, and have ventured out, gingerly, to a few places, mainly to buy bedding plants. I did have minor surgery on the 1st of July. Oddly, I felt safer in the hospital than anywhere else, except at home. My husband is playing tennis again (outside only, and with great caution).  I am enjoying my garden and my front porch, and I'm very grateful that winter is a long way off. 

Church is open again, with many rules and restrictions, but not many have chosen to attend in person. For the next three weeks of the Rector's vacation, I will be helping to lead Morning Prayer -- from my study, via Zoom.  Choir, of course, is suspended indefinitely, since choristers are super spreaders. I take long drives and warm up my voice in the car, using the warmup playlist I formerly used on the way to practice and services. It is not much. but it is something.

Mainly, I am grateful, on day #134, to still be breathing when so many people have died.  Those more religious than I seem to believe God will protect them from the virus, or at least heal them if they catch it. In view of the fact that every single one of the 143,193 souls lost so far probably had many people praying for them, I think we can leave God out of this picture. Pandemics are a natural evil, and we understand that natural evil happens. But in the case of the United States, natural evil has been exacerbated by governmental evil. This is something we cannot, must not, forget.

We can vote the current government out, of course, and I hope we will.  In the meantime, I'd just like to say:

To all who have died, or will die, of COVID-19, both the general population and healthcare workers,

        I will not forget you.

To all who are serving selflessly as EMTs/Paramedics, physicians, nurses, and in allied health disciplines,

        I will not forget you.

To the scientists who have tried to lead us on the right path,  despite being attacked by our government, and to those attempting to develop therapies and vaccines against this terrible disease,

        I will not forget you.

And to Donald Trump, whose blatant ignorance, callousness, and malfeasance have cost so very many lives,

        I will not forget you on November 3rd. And I will never forgive you.