As these days slowly drift along.. these days of quarantine, in a time unlike any most of us have ever experienced, we can find ourselves becoming weary of the isolation. It was a bit of an adventure at first, as we laughed ourselves through the toilet paper jokes and found new creative ways to buy our groceries and arm ourselves against the world outside our own little home and the people in it. We have bravely fought against fear and braced ourselves as we tuned into the news each day to learn of more casualties. We have kept ourselves and our friends laughing and smiling as best we could, to help keep from feeling the fear and isolation.. and that is a good thing. We have come together in so many ways.. helping one another and sharing ideas and concerns. We have worked together to practice social distancing for the good of all. We have been brave and caring and generous. We have been powerless in some ways, but courageous in so many others. Eventually, this time will come to an end. We don’t know exactly when.. We can only pray that there will be less casualties than predicted. We can only pray that our families and loved ones and friends will stay safe…
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if, when this time is over, we could take this experience and learn from it? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could use this experience to make some positive changes in the world around us? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could all begin to treat one another with more kindness and respect? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could all remember how much we love and need one another? And wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could all think long and hard before we use words of hate and blame against others? Let’s use our bravery and our ability to come together to make this world a better place. Let’s keep one another smiling and laughing, let’s continue to help one another, let’s make this a kinder world. We each have it within our power to do our part. Let’s make this time of quarantine a time that mattered.

~ Carole Carter – words and photograph