Hope Notes: Observing
The first item in Good Moves this week is about a garbage collector in Kentucky who noticed that one of his customers, an elderly woman living alone, had not put out her trash in two weeks. He checked on her and discovered she had no food to eat - hence, no trash to put out. They bought her a pantry worth of food and made plans to check in with her every week.
Essential workers, indeed.
In so many ways, we are living through an invisible crisis. We’re staying in our houses. No visitors are allowed in hospitals. The depths of this crisis will sometimes break through in the news, as when the line of cars waiting to get to the local food bank extends halfway across town. Most days, though, even for those who have been directly affected, the action is happening off camera.
It’s so important that we practice our observing skills as part of our discipline of hope. None of us will truly recover until our communities recover. So if we want things to get better, if we want to enjoy the small pleasures of life in our neighborhoods again, we have to look around and ask:
What’s missing, and who’s missing, right now?
Road to Recovery
As of yesterday, there are at least 2,349,598 people worldwide who have tested positive for COVID-19 and have fully recovered. This is an increase of 643,059 since our last edition - more than half a million people just in one week! An unknown number more have encountered the virus on their own and made a full recovery.
We hope for peace in the lives of everyone who has lost a loved one or friend in the midst of this crisis. We hope for strength in the lives of those who are actively suffering right now, and we hope for continued patience in everyone who is tired of the restrictions required for lockdowns and quarantine.
Good Moves
How people are practicing generosity, ingenuity, and love around us right now.
Cloudy, With a Chance of Penguins
Things are getting weird out there.
It’s been several weeks since the penguins at the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago started wandering all over the place without tourists in their way. Not to be outdone, their cousins in Kansas City took a trip to the art museum.
Most salad bars have been shut down because of public health rules, but what if I told you there’s something even better in store for you at your bodega?
How do you baptize a baby in social distancing mode? With a Super Soaker, obviously.
And Finally…
It’s tough going out on the town right now and feeling truly carefree. Did you know that you could have that feeling… right inside your house?
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Be well, friends.
- Michael
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