Several weeks ago I put my diabetes educator hat down and moved to bedside nursing to help with the COVID-19 pandemic at my local hospital. Not surprisingly, the whole situation has been very stressful for pretty much everyone, with our normal changed into a new somewhat chaotic normal. To add to the stress are the the thoughts and many questions regarding what the future might look like. 

Recently a friend posted on Facebook his frustration not about the current situation, but how now he can’t dream about the future. For us humans, who love to plan for better days, this is certainly a difficult time. Stuck on a limbo.  

For me it has been hard to not see people’s smiles, and hear their voices now hiding behind masks. And I miss hugging my friends.

With thoughts of stress and worry running through my mind I decided it was time to step away from the computer and go for a walk. The podcast from The Wild I listened to was about owls, and the conversation, descriptions, and sounds made me feel like I was in the Olympia National Forest searching for owls. The words coming through my ears were inspiring, making me more alert to the sights around me. Slowly I moved back to the present, to the right here and right now. 

I must have gone for a walk at the right time, because different hawks were flying across the sky. I love birds and thought how sometimes, when my backyard is filled with little birds eating from the feeders, I’m creating an opportunity for bigger birds to eat too. Such is life in this world! A pair of mourning doves landed on the roof of a house nearby. Did you know that most mourning doves mate for life? That’s why we often see them flying in pairs. On the sand path on top of a little hill I had an encounter with a roadrunner. We stared at each other for a few moments unsure of what to do. I didn’t want to scare it away. A fat lizard hung from its beak. Breakfast. The roadrunner took off in front of me, running until I couldn’t see it anymore. 

The sun was shining beautifully trying to heat up the landscape, but the cool wind was stronger and I had to keep my jacket on. So glad I had brought my jacket. I’m sure the couple who passed by in shorts and t-shirts wished they had brought a jacket too.  

Spring is in full bloom and the flowers and bushes growing along the path have a unique beauty of their own. Unnoticed most of the time, they quietly fulfill their purpose by feeding and housing lots of insects and even humming birds. I tried to notice these little plants so easily trampled by our feet. Some produce such beautiful and delicate flowers. 

Almost home I saw a message written in chalk on the side walk: Hope is not canceled! 

True! Maybe I can’t plan summer trips. Maybe right now I can’t see people’s smiles or hug my friends like I want. Maybe right now I have to isolate myself from the world. But I can hope. 

I can hope of better days ahead. Of get-togethers with friends, and tight hugs. Where children can once again use the playgrounds, and teens share basketball courts. Of leaving the confinement of our backyards and explore once again the big wide world, so small in the universe. Of church potlucks and praising God together with my church family.

Perhaps these last few months have made a difference for the better. And with our human nature of wanting better days, the resilience built in inside of us, and the amazing God-given gift of restoration, we can hope, and dare I say dream, of a better world after this pandemic has passed.