Alka's Angle

Hope everyone had a safe and satisfying Thanksgiving, given the circumstances and the reality of world we live in. One of the things I was most grateful about last week, was the meals we delivered to some members of our Broadway family. And that was possible because Jon Fallon cooked the best meal, Satia Orange coordinated everything, and Charolette and Nicole contributed to make the meal festive. It was appreciated by all, so we looked for a way to do something for the whole community during Advent, and a suggestion was to have an outside mitten tree. What a great idea! 

Friends, no one had imagined we would be having the kind of Thanksgiving we will have this year! And yet -- here we are!  So, I was looking for a message that would help us keep things in perspective, for the reality is that we will not be with family and friends as we are used to.

I was in the kitchen when my phone suddenly started making the Emergency Alert sound! It startled me because: 1) I didn’t have the TV on and I had only experienced that sound on TV, and 2) I didn’t think the weather was going to be bad at all, so then why the alarm? Just as I was thinking, the announcement began -- telling us that we needed to stay at home and only go out if necessary! Even though I know both our Governor and the Mayor have been telling us this was coming, and even though our Bishop has also asked churches to stop all in-person worship, my heart did miss a beat at the announcement! I am sure I am not alone.

I am sure you are feeling the same stress that I am feeling -- caused by the resurgence, the longing to see friends, the uncertainty of this pandemic coming to an end, the beginning of shortened days, and on and on I could go.

But it is not healthy for us to live with that stress, and the truth is it does no one any good, nor does it change anything.  A friend recently shared this story with me, that I am now sharing with you: 

This is a beautiful week -- weather wise. The sun is out, the temperatures have been high enough for us to enjoy the outside for a few more days. I want to focus on that because it feels like everything else is in a state of uncertainty and indecision. Election results are not final yet and COVID is returning even stronger and more aggressive. I feel part of the reason for this strong resurgence might be coming from the fact that many of us have gotten used to the reality and relaxed our guards a little. Regardless, the reality is that Illinois was reported to hit 10,000 COVID deaths yesterday, and a record-breaking 9,900 new COVID cases.