May 16, 2020 . . .

I think this was the first, or one of the first, guest appearances to get cancelled, right after the club decided to cancel all meetings and club activities. Yesterday, we were supposed to host the Hospice Charity Benefit – NIL-A NOVA Band, Directed by Kevin Masterson in the sanctuary of Paulin Memorial Church, where we usually meet, I should say – used to meet. That is, before the advent of Covid-19 restrictions.
I stay home a lot these days – just like a lot of you. At the risk of sounding like the proverbial broken record, how is everyone doing? No, I take that back! I really mean it! How is everyone doing? I do hope that every one of you is safe, well, and still smiling! Inge, Rosie (our dog) and I are OK. In fact, just like most of you, we stay home, except for the odd dash to Food Basics for groceries, all the time. Even our meds are delivered to our door. Inge tries to walk Rosie every day that it’s not raining, and I walk a few blocks, close to our house.
How much longer will our stay-at-home routine have to last? The plain truth is – nobody knows. But I do know this. Now is not the time to be impatient! Now is the time to persevere! We can wonder, just as I do, what the ‘new normal’ will be like. We all have developed coping mechanisms, at least some of us have, being cooped up at home. But sometimes, I just wonder what our ‘new normal’ will be like . . .
Stay safe, stay well, get some fresh air if you can, and keep smiling . . .
‘til we meet again . . .