Looking back and looking forward

This time last year, all of us in New York were not just socially distancing but were on lockdown. We avoided going outside. Each day I read the terrifying dispatches from the Covid-19 ICU written by my dear friend Kara, a hospital chaplain, who was doing her best to give comfort to the dying and their families. Helping people send last words of love to their dying parents through ipads, using remote translators to offer comfort to the dying, watching nearly every patient in the Covid ICU die except for one feisty Russian woman. Kara's postings reminded me why staying inside of my apartment was so important.

For weeks and weeks, our only contact with others was through the 7:00 pm cheer which was both a tribute to healthcare workers and a reminder to one another that we were still alive, that all of the windows facing my apartment were filled with people.

The cheer gave us a moment to connect with one another not through a screen, but in real life.

Last year, the thought of eating Shabbat dinner around a table with my family and friends was in a theoretical future---kind of like waiting for the messiah. Today I know that in the middle of June my kids can join us for Shabbat dinner, not on a screen but in real life.

I don't know if that is why the tulips blooming in the middle of Broadway seem especially bright this year.

Wearing a mask means that I can actually go into the park while everything is in bloom and not feel like I have to rip my face off because of my allergies.

For the past several years my husband has taken walks in the park when everything is in bloom and taken photos for me so I could enjoy the beauty.

This year I could go and smell the jasmine on my own.

These two little girls were collecting cherry blossoms on paper plates

We are all slowly emerging from the land of illness and death.

Yesterday, I visited the thrift store to satisfy my urge to see things.

They were selling these vintage sewing machines. I know that some of my readers are collectors. So, for them, I am including closeups and model numbers when possible. If you want me to purchase any of them for you (Yes, you will need to pay for shipping as well as the cost of the machine), let me know.