April In Pieces . . .

Today I am grateful for lively discussions at work, playing catch with our grandson, and two days of sunshine in a row.

Two years ago at this time, we were experiencing “stay at home” orders and living in plenty of fear about contracting COVID-19. It was a very strange and unsettling time. Our son Sam was a senior in high school, and he and his classmates had an end to their high school days that they never could have anticipated. We were stocking up on hand sanitizer and paper products, and trying to find the most comfortable masks. School buildings sat empty and Zoom became a way of life. Strange days indeed.

My sister Aileen had just been diagnosed with lymphoma, the fifth sister to receive a cancer diagnosis. It was less than a year since our sister Mary Jo had died of metastatic breast cancer. Our mom was locked down in her nursing home and her mind was getting further locked down my dementia. What do you do at such times of uncertainty, worry, and grief? One thing we did was write. We decided to take on our own poem-a-day challenge for National Poetry Month in April 2020. It was a way for us to pour out the range of emotions we were experiencing and to also connect across the miles.

Those poems became our first sister poetry compilation titled “April in Pieces . . . Seven Sisters Writing on COVID and Cancer.” I had dreamed of publishing a book, and the strange circumstances of COVID-19 helped bring that to fruition. We had, and still have, much to learn about the world of self-publishing. But we figured it out and got this first book out there.

Here is a link to both of our sister books. Check them out and consider ordering a copy or two to share.

I sit here, two years later, and ponder where we are at now regarding the pandemic. I give thanks for the vaccines and all who have made those possible; from scientists who created them to health care workers who administer them. I give thanks for the return to more normal times, and the lessons of the pandemic that remain. Nothing is guaranteed in life. That has always been the case, but we humans get a little arrogant at times. A tiny virus took us down a few notches, and also reminded us of what matters most: our health, being with those we care about, shared humanity.

Two years ago, seven sisters wrote themselves through a really challenging time. We survived and our writing continues. Have a good day! I’ll be back blogging next week. Write on!