Okay, It's not your typical Christmas Letter...

 

What began as the ubiquitous Christmas letter to include in our Christmas cards has quickly morphed instead to this, as I found that I could not avoid the insipid and couldn’t even write a tongue-in-cheek missive.  I was not spreading tidings of good cheer.

Projections for deaths due to COVID are as high as 500,000 by January and yet there remains a large part of the population who disavows the virus entirely.  Some recognize it, but claim it is ‘only the flu’.  Our hospitals are crowded and our caregivers over worked and overwhelmed, and still many deny the urgency.  After Governor Larry Hogan’s speech last week cautioning Marylanders about the risks of travel and Thanksgiving gatherings, one person left the comment:  "I am having 20 people over to my house on Thursday, so take THAT, Hogie!!" 

And while I’d like to think that this spiteful, ignorant individual is one of only a few, I suspect with all the outrage expressed by having to wear masks that he is not.  Seems Americans have a horrid case of “you’re not the boss of me” and it is killing us.

Yes, our country was founded on ideas of independence and individuality.  These traits were nurtured by many long after the last shot of the Revolution was fired, and Bostonians could sip their untaxed tea.  Emerson and Thoreau, for instance, called for independence from sameness and following the crowd.  And while these ideas are crucial to a burgeoning democracy, and certainly inspirational, right now they are our most certain demise.

I miss meeting up with our friends.  I miss going to restaurants, attending football games or concerts.  I imagine with inordinate glee walking into a store and shopping regardless of occupancy.  And I adore the idea of being able to see through my glasses without the fog created by a mask.

This country has endured many challenges, but we’ve always come together and worked for the common good.  I’m hoping that with actual leadership from a new administration we can unite to overtake this current threat, but I am frightened and doubtful given the animosity that has festered for the last four years.

 

Just Call Me Pollyanna

Good news out of Bermuda:  no injuries and no mortalities because of Igor.   For such a massive storm, this is a blessing.  (Pictures of the waves amazed me).

We got our flu shots on Friday.  Coming out of the doctor's office, my husband mentioned he wasn't feeling well and his arm hurt and if he got sick it was all my fault.  I assured him that the side effects from the shot, while mild, would not have been evident in 10 minutes.  He's not sure...

And we're packing again.  We leave in a few days for a cruise to Canada -- something we've talked about doing for a long time.  The cruise we were initially interested in isn't offered from our port of choice, but this one, while not visiting the Maritime Provinces, does stop in St. John and Halifax, and a couple of ports in Maine. I love being at sea and sit for hours just staring at the water.  It is our habit to have an early dinner, and then hot tea with lemon as we watch the sunset.  Yes, I realize for some the excitement overwhelms, but that's just the way we are.  Hopefully, storms and their effects will be kept at bay (just not the Bay of Fundy ☺) and what Gilly and her husband experienced a few weeks ago, will not be the case. 

The visceral responses to my post on "Choosing Civility" and Dr. Forni's program surprised me.   After reading Bill's post and seeing how graciously he handled a bad situation,  I've decided that a change starts with me.  Remembering my favorite quote, "For it matters not how small the beginning may seem to be, what is once well done is done forever," (Thoreau) I will be out there being gracious and kind and never flipping off another driver or scowling at rudeness again.  I will simply bite my already bloody tongue, smile and handle caustic, obnoxious behavior with aplomb and gentility.  Maybe the latter will begin to come naturally.

One of my favorite quotes is one from Henry David Thoreau, "For it matters not how small the beginning may seem to be, what is once well done is done forever."
Of course, Thoreau was writing about the abolition of slavery in Massachusetts. He said that once one man stood up against slavery, the revolution would begin and slavery would be as good as gone. He felt strongly that was all it would take: one man, one woman... Do I agree? Positively. I've seen it in my own lifetime.
So... believing in the importance of periodically 'taking stock' I started thinking and came up with these:

I believe in the basic goodness of humankind.
I believe that loving one another is strongly within our nature.
I believe we are an amalgam of all those with whom we have come in contact.
I believe that one person can make a monumental difference in the world and that love comes back to us threefold.
I believe that we are like a ripple effect -- that once that stone hits the pond, the ripples go on forever...
I believe that we still control our own destinies.
I believe that hatred is cancer: it eats away at the hater, but is toxic to all around it.