Stark Contrast
Today I am grateful for amazing weather over the weekend and the opportunities to spend time with family in a variety of ways; in person, FaceTime, phone, Zoom.
This Easter Sunday was such a stark contrast to last year's. Let's start with the weather. Last Easter was later on the calendar, April 12, but less like spring. We had a snowstorm that day. Yesterday, it was pushing 80 degrees in our neck of the woods.
And how about all things COVID-19 pandemic? We are seasoned veterans now, marching through this mess with resilience and more hope than we had a year ago. April 2020 felt so strange and was entirely unprecedented in what was unfolding. Distance learning. Sports seasons cancelled. Stores and restaurants closed. Trying to find the most comfortable masks. Crossing the street when encountering other walkers or runners.
That list could go on for quite some time. Suffice it to say that fear and uncertainty were rampant. We didn't know then how long this would go on. It's probably better we didn't. Our hope would have waned more rapidly.
Here we are, a full year later. COVID-19 continues to be a significant factor in our lives in many ways, but now we have vaccines. We have science and time that have shown the efficacy and protection of mask wearing. We know that learning can still take place in a new type of classroom.
The challenges are still daunting. The toll has been devastating. We will be recovering from this for a long time; personally, collectively, economically, educationally, spiritually.
For now though, I will appreciate that we could attend outdoor services at our church yesterday. Easter Sunday has always been a favorite service for me. The joy is fully present in the music and the words. As I sat in the parking lot with forty or so others, I looked up and saw this sharp contrast:
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