Day 3: The plainest of views
Hi. We only have three days left of our countdown of 33 days. Want to contribute something to Friday’s last edition, aka Day 1? Hit reply or send me an email at hi@lauraolin.com.
Here are some notes people sent in over the last few days from around the country and the world:
Jenni M.:
My family and I walked our dog around downtown Raleigh on Sunday afternoon. We had masks at the ready but didn't need them: I counted five other humans during our hour-long trek. Clumps of oak pollen drifted around the empty streets like tumbleweeds. We came across two messages at a favorite park square. I looked at the photos again today, after thinking about this line from Julio Vincent Gambuto's recent article: "What the crisis has given us is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see ourselves and our country in the plainest of views."
Chrysanthe T.:
I’ve been home with my dad in my childhood home in Vermont for four weeks now (I miss you, Brooklyn!), on a quiet street in a town so small it’s actually considered a village. Needless to say, not much happens. We’re across the street from a cemetery so things are truly quiet. One rainy weekend morning a couple weeks ago, I saw a row of cars driving slowly, spaced out, with their lights on and heard beeping and yelling. I went out on the porch and I saw hand-made signs and people hanging out of the car windows. I looked down the street to our neighbor’s house (separated by a wooded forest) and noticed the whole family standing under umbrellas. It was one of their kid’s birthdays and friends and family had made a little birthday parade to celebrate from a distance. The full row of cars turned around and drove slowly by again. Full disclosure this made me smile but also cry.
Alex T.:
My person lives in the US and I live in Canada so we haven't seen each other since Jan and won't see each other again for an unknown amount of time. We've always texted constantly and I think we were both a bit worried of running out of things to say/send once we both went into isolation, but we've started sending each other tiny 5 second videos of the minutiae of our day and its been unexpectedly wonderful watching him wash the dishes or watching TV with his cat next to him. Makes the distance seem a bit smaller.
David G.:
We have two boys (9 and 4). Last week we made THANK-YOU cards for our mail carrier. We saw her while riding our bikes a few days later and she stopped to say that it was the sweetest thing anyone had ever done for her, and that the card was on her fridge at home. My wife took the boys and the three of them used sidewalk chalk to make giant notes of thanks and appreciation in the driveway for the UPS, USPS, FedEx, DHL, and Amazon drivers. My home office looks out on the driveway and it’s wonderful to see them all smile when they deliver packages to our house.
Rebecca J.:
I teach writing at a university, and during a Zoom call with my class, one student held a weeks-old puppy, swaddled in a towel, up to the camera. Everyone cooed. Another typed in the chat window: “I say that if the British can have teatime in the bombed-out ruins of London during WWII, we can manage this.” A third apologized for having his video turned off; he was in a darkened room with his daughter asleep on his chest. I nearly melted into a puddle at my desk.
Rachel W.:
This weekend I was struck by the idea that instead of the embracing the hustle, I will heed instead. I will heed my body’s need for rest, my head’s need for distraction and entertainment, and my heart’s need for connecting, however that looks now. Even typing that made me feel better. Will I make bread this weekend? Maybe. But I’ll listen to my personal cues and make the best choice I can.
Corey C.:
Every morning, I take my 2-year-old on a walk. Usually we walk due West toward the hill full of fancy houses, or due East toward the freeway overpass. If we time it right, we get to see a couple fire trucks out for their morning constitutional. We always pick one flower for the toddler to carry, but he always wants me to pick another for myself. It's quieter in the city these days, so yesterday we heard a ton of birds on our way home, and spent the rest of our walk practicing our chirps and tweets.
Rosie C.:
When we came out of self-isolation last week I dropped postcards through the doors of the six neighbours above and below us in our block of flats, offering to get them groceries or pick up prescriptions, and apologising for the volume of noise coming from our nearly-2-year-old daughter. Much to my amazement several of them messaged to introduce themselves and thank me, with our neighbour below valiantly claiming that she enjoys the noise as it makes her feel alive! Bless her for saying so - I do worry about the thumping and creaking as we leap around attempting "PE with Joe" workouts. Anyway, over the Easter weekend one neighbour left a chocolate bunny on our doorstep and another actually sewed a rabbit soft toy for our daughter! We've slipped glittery finger paintings through their letterboxes as an Easter thank you. It feels like we're slowly becoming more of a community. Best wishes from Brighton, on the south coast of England.
Want to contribute something to Friday’s last edition? Hit reply or send me an email at hi@lauraolin.com. See you on Day 1.