Since the new year kicked off things have been busy, and not just in my life, but seemingly nationwide and worldwide. It’s no secret that we’ve been battling this Covid chaos, and this pandemic has thrown us all for a loop. Our careers have been put on hold, putting us in financial binds, and the stress is skyrocketing. You feel enveloped in the tension as soon as you walk into your local grocery store. Most everyone is wearing masks, gloves, or both. It’s an alarming sight to walk into a store and view citizens through this borderline apocalyptic lens. We’re keeping a six foot distance with our neighbors and even our close relatives. No hugging, and no handshaking, I mean … it’s a foreign way to live for a lot of us. Everything feels estranged, and abnormal. Millions have been ordered to shelter in place. Even though our president and local officials have instructed to only purchase what’s necessary for our weekly grocery haul, many are still hoard buying various and assorted supplies. Although, due to greediness – stores now have limits on what we can actually take home to our families. For many families, it’s a household of four or more – and I can only imagine how they must feel trying to limit their shopping trips to once or twice a week, trying to make their rationed items last. I can’t speak for other countries, but it seems like America is taking this “doomsday prepper” mentality to a whole new level.

ANYONE SEEN ANY TOFU LATELY?

Don’t know about you guys, but it’s somewhat of a staple for me – and the stuff has been practically absent since this pandemic begun. Finally scored a few packages last week, but not my normal “brand buy” for sure. And of course, the common pantry staples are being regularly wiped out too, like your beans, rice, canned goods and the pre-packaged foods. Toilet paper, and really all paper goods – depleted, with frequency. Frozen t.v dinners, veggies, you name it – it’s all buried deep in freezers nationwide, in hopes of easing family’s worries of eventual outright food scarcity. Over this past month, certain foods have slowly returned – but for how long? Here we are in the middle of April and we are all seeing COVID hit its peak. Or have we? For at least the state of Georgia, we’ve extended the executive order of a state of emergency until May 13th, and have taken even more drastic measures to slow the spread of this monster virus. Our shelter in place has been drawn out to April 30th, putting strain on countless “non essential” workers – my husband being one of them.

If I had to guess, at the end of this month – I think many, if not, the majority of us will have had a lot of time to think about how we can slash the unnecessary snacks and frivolous indulgences and compile a grocery list of literally just the meager essentials. We Americans love our comforts, and guilty pleasures. Before you know it, the avid Starbucks coffee drinkers will be opting for that home brew cup as opposed to that $6 latte once, or twice every day. You slam a capitalism crunch on this nation – and wallets tighten up. We are still driven by consumerism, but again, for how long? If there’s no money to make, then there’s no money to spend.. and everyone pays the price.

Our government would do well to realize that the survival of America, relies solely on the citizens ability to make the dollar go-round, if you will. When we have money to spend – we eat, we travel, we invest, and ultimately thrive. It’s a win-win for the government because when we prosper – they prosper, and in generous proportions I might add.

We want to see this nation come back and prosper yet again, and I know we’ll hold on as long as we can. But, our wherewithal to hang on to this fight is becoming not just financially draining, but emotionally taxing as well. Families aren’t able to gather as they once did, food scarcity is dauntingly evident, and selfishness and stupidity are equally yoked at this point. The truth hurts, but it’s pretty black and white. Can I get a witness?

MARCH BROUGHT SOME AMAZING NEWS FOR ME

I have been keeping this on the hush hush for the past month, but it’s time to spill the beans! I had planned on announcing this in an entirely different way, but given the current circumstances of this pandemic – this’ll have to do.

My book is finished! It has been, for a little over a month now. My motivational autobiography, “Faith With A Limp,” is not only completed – but I got the news that the publishing company “Christian Faith Publishing” wants to partner with me! I couldn’t have been more elated when I received the news at the beginning of March. I had hoped we could get the ball rolling and launch the publishing by now, but it’s been put on hold. I pumped the brakes on this, voluntarily. Publishing a book isn’t exactly cheap, and given the initial investment, now isn’t really a good time. My literary agent and the company are super understanding, and we have agreed to touch base in a couple months. I’m hoping and praying that this economy bounces back sooner than later, so I can make my dream a reality. All in God’s timing, right?

THERE IS MUCH JOY TO STILL BE HAD IN THIS TIME OF QUARANTINE, THOUGH!

Tippertoes and I have been spending some of our warmer Spring days over at my parents property, (and , if I could be bold enough to say that it’s more than easy to maintain the customary “6 feet social distance” ordinance. Given the size of their property, our spacing is more like 12 feet apart.)

Check out this fun music video I made of one of our days!

RESHAPE THE PERSPECTIVE

We could all easily worry more… about a lot of stuff – especially right now. I’m sure the avenues of worry, stress, and burdens are similar for us right now. There’s degrees of variance, no doubt. But if I’ve learned anything the past several years throughout my medical journey, it’s about appreciating and reveling in the here and now. It’s about the quality of the day, not necessarily the quantity of the days that lie ahead. Tomorrow isn’t guaranteed.

TAKE A STAND

None of us know how long all of this madness will last. We are living through an insane time. No one has ever seen anything like this. A sickness that stops everyone in their tracks, shuts schools and businesses down for months, and causes astronomical grocery shortages? What is going on? Stocks are dropping, causing the 401k’s and IRA’s to take major hits. While some are losing tens of thousands – there are families that are losing just thousands, and it’s getting down to the nitty-gritty. It’s becoming less about having a safety net for your retirement, and becoming more about survival on a day to day basis. This is history in the making. I have no doubt that COVID is a real issue. But we all know how good the media is at blowing things out of proportion, and fear mongering. It’s no secret – they’ve done it for years. False journalism abounds, and we the American people hang on to their words like grim death.

I have a sneaking suspicion that our government sometimes expects us to follow whatever orders they force-ably drive forward. We obey and fall in line like good little sheep. I’m not proposing anarchy. But I am proposing that if push comes to shove, we take a stand… together.

This isn’t my normal post. But this isn’t normal times.

Today, revel in the time with your family. Eat that piece of cake. Write a letter to a loved one. Call your parents. Write a book. Color. Create. Live. Pray, and often. Choose to live in this day, and not the worries of tomorrow.

And stay vigilant my friends.