Wednesday things to think about . . .

 

I think one of the best things to come out of these past few weeks is that in many ways we have ben forced to slow down and reassess things in our lives.  Maybe that is not the case for everyone but it sure has been for me.  Certainly a lot of the things that I felt were important before have become not-so-important now.  Life has slowed down in many ways. 

I have pretty much shut down my food blog page on Facebook.  Mind you that was somewhat exacerbated by the fact that FB was pretty much marking all of my recipes as spam and removing them.  I am not sure if that was an individual reporting them as spam or if it was a bug with facebook, but that small thing has added quite a bit of time to my days, time better spent doing different things.  I used to spend several hours each day on that page, posting, responding to comments, etc.  I have this thing where I feel that anyone who makes a comment deserves a response and some days there were literally hundreds of comments to respond to, or questions to answer.  In all truth, I am somewhat relieved to not have to do that any more each morning. 

 

I have seen a great outpouring of love and help in the world, in my own community, which far overshadows any negative.  People are stepping up and reaching out to others in amazing ways.  Hundreds of thousands have volunteered to bring things to those who are not able to get out and do anything for themselves.  Neighbor is checking up on neighbor.  Families are re-connecting, slowing down . . .  spending time with each other in small and important ways, that they never had time for before. 

People are reaching out through the miracle of modern technology to uplift each other and put somehing positive into other's days.  Many famous singers and actors, etc. have taken the opportunity to put out sweet little videos, impromptu concerts, etc.  We all have extra time on our hands, and using that extra time to bless others is what I see happening, again and again.  

My neighbor asked me yesterday did I want some apples, she had too many.  I have lots of apples also, but I said to her, I do have plenty of apples but let me turn yours into something you and your son will enjoy.  Please. And so today I am baking them a crumble and Todd will leave it on their doorstep and ring the bell.  And they will be happy and I will be happy.  She has been buying loaves of bread and leaving them for us and not letting me pay for them. Now I can return the favour, which really makes me happy.  Small things.  

Yesterday I had a video call from someone at church.  We normally only speak on Sundays, but yesterday we had a chance to laugh together and share and I just know both of our days were brightened by it. Its not a bad thing and I have vowed now to contact at least one person each day to let them know I am thinking about them and share a few words together. 

 

Everything has become that much more precious. Nobody knows who is going to get out of this alive.  This virus is no respecter of persons. It doesn't care if you are rich or if you are poor, if you are a future king or a bin man. Nobody is safe from it. Nobody.  Not the young, nor the old, nor leaders of countries and governments.  To be sure that the elderly and those with underlying health problems are more at risk of dying if they catch it.  But anyone can catch it. We are all at risk. There is so much that we don't know about it.  A first this was really frightening, and I am not going to lie, I am still frightened, only a fool wouldn't be . . .  but the silver lining is that everything in my life has become much more meaningful.  Oh to be sure, I was always an appreciater of small things, but I am even more so now, and I know I am not alone in that.  

 

Hopefully we have all become less wasteful.  I know that I have become less wasteful.  I now think twice before I throw away something which is out of date.  Over these past few weeks I have eaten pasta that was ten years out of date, tuna and salmon that was out of date, tinned tomatoes that were out of date, out of date beans,  and the list goes on.  I am beginning to think that there is a conspiracy behind sell by/best by dates that makes us buy more instead of using what we already have.  Oh, I know  . . .  they do it  to protect themselves, but the facts are, if it smells okay, the colour is okay, the can isn't bulging, it is probably safe to eat.  It might not taste at its best, but you can still use it and it will go great in a casserole.  This applies to loads of things.  Even freezer burnt meat. 

 

This has been a time to be grateful and to express gratitude.  For the helpers, for the health care system, for each other, for out of date salmon that still makes a great salmon loaf,  for extra hours to explore our talents and to finish unfinished projects, for more time to connect with the things that matter most. 

No, its not all bad.  For sure I will be happy when it is all over and when things hopefully get back to normal, but I do hope that some of the things I have learnt in the process will be things that I never forget and will become habitual.  It only takes 21 days for something to become a habit, 3 weeks . . . and we all certainly have 21 days  . . .

  

A though to carry with you  . . . 

° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
•。★★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~＼。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ ｜ 田田 ｜門 ★
 *We are each of us angels

with only one wing

and we can only fly by

embracing on another.

~Luciano de Crescenzo•。★★ 。* 。

° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ • 

 

Diamonds from dust.  I had a bag of really hard pears so I roasted them with some honey, cinnamon and cardamom for the win!  In the English Kitchen today.

Have a wonderful Wednesday.  Stay home and stay safe and stay healthy.  Be the reason someone smiles today. Don't forget! 

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  And I do too!!