Today’s The Day

Today is the day that we all need to stop and think. Not about how thankful we are (although that is very important as well) but about how we are.

SundayStills My Silver Lining

I’ve used the basis of these words “silver lining” for a title before but this particular time they actually are in reference to a song title and not a perspective on life. I also stuck a pronoun in front of it because I want to make it personal. How these words affect my life and what my silver lining is and has been for the last 40+ years.

#Sundaystills shapes

The theme this week is geometry. Which lead me to right angle triangles and trigonometry and how that was NOT my thing. At all. But, and it’s a good but, my best friend totally got it. So much so that she taught it to me, one of many reasons I still love her. Not surprising that she ended up as a high school math teacher; one that students gave many accolades to.

215

Cruelly, during the nights

215 heartbeats silenced

Bodies dumped out of sight

Sunday Stills of Rosy Reds

It is entirely possible I will struggle with the link but I did want to participate (for the first time ever) in #SundayStills. The prompt this week is #RosyReds and that struck me as so timely today that I wanted to hop on the band wagon. Now if I can just pull it all together!

A ray of sunshine

I rarely plan my posts ahead of time. They just appear, as if by magic, into my head. The thoughts are usually in one theme and headed in a straight forward direction. Rarely are they philosophical or “flowy” in how they tie together a concept and the reality of daily living. Perhaps today I can manage that so I am going to interrupt Charlotte  (once again).

But wait…

But wait – it’s #BellLet’sTalk day so just a quick post to talk about how important it is to address self care and mental health.

Too often it’s the elephant in the room and people just feel like they don’t have a choice. So they live with anxiety, depression and in pain emotionally. The pandemic has been extremely difficult for so many on a lot of levels.

Reach out. Call, text, email or emoji a friend or family member. Tell them you are there. Show them you are there by being there. Keep connecting. Keep trying even if it feels hard. It’s harder for them. Give them a piece of your heart.

Stay safe and stay kind.

HUGS.

Bernie

Bone Weary

The clock said it had been only 12 hours but it had felt endless. A full shift of donning and doffing PPE, of monitors, codes and death.

Not just one death. That was always hard enough but to be followed so quickly by the second.

The drive home, dark and sullen, another calendar day surrendered to winter and the fight against Covid19.

I feel spent she thought as she walked up the sidewalk to her home. Sometimes the great bones of my life feel so heavy. I wish with all my heart that I could just walk through the door and collapse.

She eased her body into the steaming hot shower. Felt the cleansing force of the water drop the weight of work from her body.

Dried and dressed she put on her “Mom” face and opened her door for the nightly kisses ritual.

Photo by Felix Mittermeier on Pexels.com

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144 word prompt with the sentence “Sometimes the great bones of my life feel so heavy”

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27 + 18 + 17 + 40 +24 + 18 = 144 (I like double triple checked that ’cause math isn’t my strong suit). Very little editing as I realized once had to leave much to the imagination.

What initials does have after her name? Does she work in ER or OR or ICU? Does she know the names of her dead patients years later? Does she wish that she’d chosen another career? Does she regret missing full days in the life of her children to help others? Does she drink that glass of wine every night to help make things seem ok?

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I had zero intention of writing this today as I am still writing the fourth section of Charlotte’s story. I guess this is what people call their “muse”. I read a post written by Louise at Dare Boldly using the word prompt and the 144 word limit; flash fiction prospery. The full link to the host site can be found here at https://dversepoets.com/2021/01/18/prosery-bone-weary/. I am still trying to figure out how to link myself to there to show that I participated. Oh technology why do we have this love hate relationship?

I went about my “business” for the day which actually just included being derailed by losing a piece of paper (the puppy’s health info sheet) and scouring (and cleaning as I went) the house looking for said piece of paper. The words kept coming back to my head and the concept was obvious to me.

I think often of my friends and colleagues as they go about their professional life during this difficult time. Those of us who are at home have it easy, those who go to work face challenges and those in health care give so much of their soul. This is my small homage to them and the many faces they wear.

Bernie

And just go

Not gonna lie – I’m a fan of country and western. The lyrics of one spoke to me this week and crystalized the way forward (maybe…).

2020 Monkeys

Way back (insert eye roll) in 2014, shortly after I started this blog, the Word Press Monkeys gave me a year end report full of interesting numbers. As a new to WordPress blogger I was like cool and expected it the next year. It didn’t happen. Any other bloggers ever have the monkey report? Please tell me I am not hallucinating!