Grateful.
First a quick update: We’re safe, well-fed, warm and healthy in the San Francisco Bay Area, where we expect to stay thru at least the middle of April. Details below.
Grateful.
Grateful for the outpouring of love from people toward those that were strangers just a short while ago. These crazy times that we live in have brought fearful humans closer together as each of us is equally capable of hosting the corona virus that may cause the COVID-19 disease in some of us. “Social distancing” seems to have brought some people closer, such as the Italians singing songs along with neighbors in balconies across the street – people that otherwise might not even have noticed each others’ existence.
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“How does one keep a heart of service and gratitude going in these uncertain times? Through reflection: reach deep within. Restrict news intake. And maybe join others that are searching for constructive answers – a call on Tuesday March 17 that we plan to join.”
Grateful too for the numberless, faceless caring professionals across the world who put themselves at risk while providing service. Yes, healthcare professionals come to mind; but so do sanitation workers and janitors; bus, train, ferry, taxi, Uber (and similar) drivers; … teachers and child- and adult-care providers; traffic police; those that trace the contacts of each infected person; the prisoners and their guards; staff and clients at homeless shelters and soup kitchens; those that serve in uniform such as the military, TSA, police and others that provide security; “social elders” (of any age) that provide needed support and sustenance to their communities; artists that provide sanity to counter craziness, fear and isolation; those that keep our computers, phones, the internet going; those that keep our financial systems going; the pilots, captains and crew of the aircraft and vessels that keep us supplied; the logistics providers and the couriers that bring us everything from COVID-19 test kits to toothpaste; those that risk exposure to the elements as well as the virus to keep our power, sewers, water and gas running; the elected and unelected legislators and government officials and bureaucracies upon whom we depend to get all these civic services; for the many scientists that are collaborating on understanding COVID-19 to eventually find a cure…. all those for whom staying at home from work is not an option…
Our thoughts and prayers for those that are suffering – from this virus, from myriad diseases, from being separated from loved ones through incarceration, borders, travel restrictions…from inequities, poverty and financial stresses… experiencing death, anxiety and loneliness… those that experience xenophobia and for those that feel so helpless that they resort to xenophobia… to all those who are quite simply scared! This kind of news of a pandemic along with financial crisis is something most us have never witnessed.
How does one keep a heart of service going in these uncertain times? Through reflection: reach deep within. Restrict news intake to what is absolutely necessary and only from credible sources while turning off the spout of fear-mongering. And maybe join others that are searching for constructive answers, on sites for example, this one on Service Space. They have a call on Tuesday March 17 at 8:30 PM Pacific Standard Time (US PST) that we plan to join. [Update – notes from the call are going in our next blog post on March 17, look for a link to the”next post”.]
A Swan by the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco. Saw these regal birds on a walk near our apartment.
Quick notes:
Family and friends are doing well. We met many recently and some photos are on this page.
Sneha is in the Bay Area, her office has closed temporarily and she will work from home. Raga is working from her apartment in Washington, DC. [Update March 21 – Raga decided to join us in California, so now the four of us are sheltered-in-place together.] Anu and family are staying warm in snowy Michigan. Amma and Baba are with them, enjoying the bonus time with the highschooler that now has to stay home.
We were in an apartment in the city of San Francisco, close to the bay. We walked by the waterfront and on the hilly streets almost daily and once even onto the Golden Gate Bridge. It was so much fun! Our cross-country road trip is on hold. Just today, we moved to a home near the Apple headquarters in Silicon Valley (the South Bay). Current plan is to stay here till at least the middle of April. Sneha may join us here. Yay!
Gayatri and family as well as Tara and family are doing well. With colleges and universities (now schools too) being closed, their kids are (finally!) home. Oh, yes, the parents are all working from home too. Sahiti returned home to India just as the gates were closing. We all met up recently.
The signature San Francisco Cable Car by the Presidio. Fewer tourists means many businesses and people struggle financially.
The Spring flowers are in full bloom. Maybe this is Nature’s way of reminding us that after the cold dark days of pandemic and financial turmoil, hope will bloom again? Grateful for each day.
