A New Normal

How many times have I heard: we will just have to get used to a "New Normal" ...what does that mean? Coming out of isolation and learning how to "safely" relate to people again in the midst of this 2020 Pandemic is hard...really hard.  I guess in some ways we feel like a bear coming out of hibernation. We really need to get out again. That is true, but we are not hungry like bears, after all the grocery stores were all open as an essential business. Snacking while binge watching Netflix was a hibernation tactic. Yup, I gained about 7 lbs, but am slowly getting back on track. It's amazing how many cute hibernation jokes there are...here's a cute one, because humor always seems to help.

Yet, in spite of all the frustrations of late, the pandemic and race riots of 2020 have hopefully instigated some new changes that are surprisingly refreshing when we view them as instruments of change.... change for the better. I like to think we all learn to appreciate those we love, both friends and family, especially when we can't see them as often as we would like. Of course, being aware of safe health practices to prevent the spread of disease is always a good reminder. And just when we were beginning to learn our New Normal everyone's world got turned upside down by the terrible death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer. Then violent protests and riots erupted in many major cities across the country. Every American was affected in one way or another by these events and the disturbing images witnessed on TV and with our own eyes create both sorrow and anger. We can only hope that these events help us move towards a better tomorrow.

As I think about these events on a personal level, I try to reexamine by own core beliefs and hope that I can relate to all my fellow humans equitably and equally. Also, as a writer...I think it's odd that during this isolation of the pandemic one would think that I would have all this time on my hands to write away and produce huge amounts of work.....Ahhh...maybe not so much. Sometimes I work better when I have more outside stimuli. I have worked on my National Parks book some. My goal was to complete it in 2020, but so far 2020 has been a really challenging and weird year. So we shall see what happens.

 So moving forward, I guess we could all ease into the New Normal however that is defined. I want to be optimistic and if history tells us anything, good things can come out of bad circumstances. Keep looking for that silver lining. Julie E. Smith