ALWAYS DO YOUR BEST

It’s past Thanksgiving and we’re on our way to Christmas. In our area we were supposed to stay home, travel no where, see no one, do nothing. Of course we did exactly the opposite. I invited family and friends and asked all of them to bring food, wear no masks, and to bring their dogs. It was utter chaos. There were dogs everywhere with one very excited puppy in the middle of everything, a Blue Healer no less. Shoes were sacrificed to the “Puppy Gods”, holes were dug (because I propped doors open so everyone could come and go as they wished), unidentifiable things were dragged inside, people laughed and told stories, ate too much and WE ALL HUGGED EACH OTHER, KISSED EACH OTHER, SAT SHOULDER TO SHOULDER. It was the perfect Thanksgiving! 

We drank wine that had been made locally, ate turkey that had been grown locally and the majority of vegetables were either produce we had grown or traded for. There were pies with whipped cream and the winner of the best story got seconds. Dogs ate things we gave to them right from the table with no one washing their hands. We even tasted food off of each other’s plates. In other words, we broke every single stupid mandate and edict out there. 

And not one of us is sick at all. Nothing, no colds, sneezes, flu symptoms or stomach problems. NO ONE IS SICK. How interesting. All of us went on hikes and walks, sat around on my ancient, sagging sofas, made an effort to hold hands and touch. We acted like human beings without politics involved in any of our decisions or stories.  

At the end of the day everyone hugged again, probably because we were all hungry for human contact. We did a classic midwestern goodbye, stood outside in the yard and talked for another hour, and everyone went home. 

Do I regret setting that up? Nope. This is, as far as we are concerned, a mask free, politics free zone. I don’t care who anyone votes for. The phrases “social distancing” and “lock down”, “ PCR Test “, “social pressure”, “ co-morbidity” , “case infection rate”, “ IFR (infection fatality rate)”, and all of the other clever phrases created to repeat and frighten people DO NOT COUNT here.

 I am off all social media platforms so there is a good chance no one will read these posts . I had built up an audience using the platforms to attract people here. I never tried to monetize this BLOG so loss of readers is meaningless. Now I write for me. This is where I voice my opinions. 

I’ve been yelled at, threatened, had property damaged by rabid people who think I am a heretic. It’s an interesting position to be in. I went from being the person artists, designers and organizations call for advice to the person they call names . Why? I asked questions. And I did research, found experts and posted their videos and papers, research on viruses and their nature, how they behave, what they are. I posted links to MD’s and PHD’s who talked about the damage being done by wearing masks, closing churches and schools, destroying small businesses as well as the actual statistics on who is in real danger from what is basically a cold virus. And the threats continued, name calling and so on and so on and scooby dooby do on. 

I am ranting here just a bit. Self, I am sorry. I want this to be an accurate account of what has happened here at the end of 2020. I’ve never labeled any year terrible, not even the year my Mom died. I still get up and say, “ What a beautiful morning! “ as my day begins. And I end everyday with , “ What a lovely day it’s been! “. It’s my personal mantra. I have decided that every day is a good day in some important way. And during the day, when I think of it or even when I don’t, I say “ I am strong. I am smart. I am capable. I am independent. I am funny. I am healthy. I am loved. I count. I am important right here, right now. I am talented. I am kind, loving, and full of hope.” The more I work on my inner dialog, the more focused I am. My boundaries are strong and my inner voice is powerful. And the further away all of the yelling, frightened, angry people seem. Everything they complain about or get angry about is their issue, not mine. I refuse to participate in the parts of our world that are rancid and destructive. 

And here we are, in December and on the way to Christmas. Neither of us has worn a mask through this entire year. We have no plans to either. We are quite capable of taking care of ourselves, making our own decisions about how to care for ourselves. We do curb side pick up and shop on line. That means local businesses suffer. I have always shopped locally. I prefer local small retail businesses. But the truth is most of them have been rude to us. I’ve shopped at some of these stores since they opened twenty, thirty and even fifty years ago. They know me. Age changes a person but not that much and they chose to run me out even when I was touching no one or thing. Essentially I have become a Typhoid Mary, in their eyes. Not my issue. The manager at Natural Grocers yelled at me when I called to make sure their check out person was OK after she, obviously, had a break down because we shopped without masks on. I was genuinely concerned. She was a kid who’s been terrified by a social media engine that has purposefully frightened people in to submission. They lost our business. And the list goes on. Things may change later but not for the people who’ve gone so far that they mistreat old customers who’ve supported their stores.

Today we’re cutting a cedar down on the land we live on, for our Christmas tree. Maybe if we’re lucky we’ll find one with a bird’s nest in it. We’re a bird sanctuary here too so I find feathers and nests blown out of trees all the time. I never take them from a tree but if there is a smaller cedar with a nest we will cut that down. And we’re putting up some lights that only we will see . I don’t mind that. Christmas is in your heart. I have no need to show anyone evidence of how we feel. We’ll wrap with the paper bits we have and give gifts we’ve made. It’s going to be a wonderful Christmas! 

I’ll post here as a journal so perhaps more often. And there will be images of the things we build and repair, the animals we care for and the beautiful land. This year will end well and next year will be spectacular!

I am, ever yours, Nancy smiling at the way things go

1. Be impeccable with your word.

2.Don’t take anything personally.

3.Don’t make assumptions.

4.Always do your best.