A Bit of Gratitude
The Pandemic. Wow. Did that really happen? We all have our interpretation of how we dealt with the chaotic world during that time. From running out of essential items to nurses and doctors being overworked and hospitals being filled to capacity. Some of us lost jobs during the pandemic, while some of us worked even more. Many lost loved ones or became very ill, as well .One thing was for certain, and that is that everything was uncertain!
Initially, we didn’t know how serious it was. I remember speaking to a friend at first, and both of us were in agreement that it was nothing more than the flu. Then, with our eyes glued to the news, realized how wrong we were!
Living in Las Vegas, the one big eye-opener was hearing that all shows, all casinos, and all that Vegas had to offer were closing their doors. Vegas?! I don’t think the casino doors had ever been closed, no less locked.
How strange that we no longer saw movie trailers when we watched television. No new shows were broadcast, and sadly, some good shows were taken off the air.
In a sense, the world in its entirety closed its doors. Not just Vegas. Everywhere!
During that time, I was fortunate not to lose my job. However, without a social life for a period of time, it would have been the perfect opportunity to write, write and write some more.
I don’t know what happened. The thrill of writing lost its luster. Or, maybe I had nothing to say. Nothing seemed appropriate. Write a thriller? Nothing I could have written would have been scarier than the world during that time.
Then things calmed down. People could socialize with masks. Then came the vaccines. We could see friends and family we hadn’t seen in months.
Did we lose the ability to socialize? I remember thinking that our lives were running parallel to the show “The Walking Dead.” No, we didn’t have zombies. But the state of disarray was quite similar to the drama series! People were frantic. Before I even knew that the stores were closing their doors, I recall seeing a man at Costco dragging two big carts full of cases of water. Then it hit me. It was each man (or woman) for themselves. Thankfully, humanity raised its head now and then. There were still good people aiming to help others.
Before the pandemic, I wrote at least a book, if not two, per year. Then, from 2019 to 2023, I didn’t type a word. I barely even went on social media. It was only August of 2023 when I began to pop on Facebook now and then. I realized how many people I had lost touch with. I was glad to see old friends, some who I knew personally and some who I met online. I am glad to see we are all awake from the pandemic! Some, I still haven’t seen.
Awake From the Pandemic
Slowly, the itch to write became strong again. I finished a book I started to write before the pandemic. Then another. Then…another. The thoughts must have been bottled up for so long they had to jump out onto paper.
I saw other author friends do a bit of the same. I can only wonder if they “closed their doors” with the pandemic, too.
Let’s hope the pandemic weasels its way out of our lives and into the darkness so that we never have to live in frenzied panic!
Well, a long, overdue thank you to those who picked up where we left off without question. It is nice to come out of the fog and into a bright array of smiling faces. I'm glad to see people are slowly becoming awake from the pandemic!
So my question to you is, did you stop doing something you love because of the pandemic?
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