Still working from home, this week saw my first small reorientation into the world as I left it. In the early half of the week I drove the family car around for the first time since I came back home. I didn’t dare roll down a window, nor exit and walk around as I drove down to Portage and back, but I still enjoyed the drive. The freedom. The control. Amidst a time of uncertainty, the familiar solo drive down the Seward highway left me whooping in joy.
On Wednesday, I felt even more connected with the world around me. In the morning, the interns and I, along with the staff assistants and certain members of the senior staff, were able to be on a conference call with the Senator. Hearing my friends and coworkers’ voices, I was grateful to hear about their safety. Their family’s safety. I was glad to hear their joviality in the face of this conflict. To hear their determination to serve as the need from each Alaskan back home grows in response to the tragedies of this pandemic left me all the more grateful for the opportunity to work alongside them. As Wednesday evening approached, my excitement again grew. Opening my bedroom door after work, I found my parents waiting for me. Having only seen them from down the hall following my flight in from Minneapolis, our contact had been nonexistent, save for any small talk across the length of the hall. To have them there before me; to finally hug them. To hold them, and tell them how much I loved them – I couldn’t have felt more connected to home. Heading with them upstairs and hugging my sister, I could see how much had changed since I left them last. The Christmas decorations yielding to the beginnings of an Easter celebration. Candles changed from pine and fir scents to those of summer – of rain and the seaside breeze. With work stations set up along the kitchen counter and the dining table, I began to see how my family was dealing with the pandemic. As much as things could be the same, they were. But for the sake of health, changes had been made. In any case I was happy to be with them. To cook my own meals and bask in the sunlight on the back deck. To not have to ask for a glass of water and for a dish to be taken up. Though some things would continue to be off for who knows how long, reconnecting on some level made things just a bit more bearable. And as the pandemic continues to worsen, anything helps.
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Photo used under Creative Commons from Mike Juvrud