We attended church yesterday… for the first time since March 0f 2020 when Covid-19 shut everything down. We wore our masks and social-distanced ourselves inside the sanctuary, but the energy was there…the Spirit of God was there… building us up, and it was good to be together again.
The welcome entrance to our church.
Since we’ve been gone some updates took place…the sanctuary was painted, the podium platform was raised 10″ for better viewing, we got new, more comfortable chairs and brand new carpet…it looks great! And seeing it filled with people was even greater.
Outside Emmaus Church in Northfield, Minnesota.
It will probably one of those first times, always remembered, as to what it was like – attending church for the first time after a pandemic.
The end of March is looming. Spring is here. People are getting vaccinated and venturing out. We’ve been cooped up, and staying close to home this past year, as Covid-19 hovered and infiltrated our life styles and wreaked havoc. But hope is definitely in the air as we move forward.
I’m grateful that my husband and I, and our son’s and their families, did not get sick with Covid, but the year was a tough one with masking up and social distancing.
The entrance sign to the state park.
Now that we are at the end of March and the pandemic has been around for a year, I was wondering what to write as a recap of my “designated year of March to March” for my annual blog-to-print book. Then, over the weekend we went on a hike in a new-to-us state park and I thought that would be fitting… to talk about hiking/walking this past year.
The trail at John Latsch State Park.
Walking was a consistent activity that I engaged in this past year, almost daily. I could probably count on my fingers the few days I missed. It was my goal, my outlet, my exercise, to get outside and walk every day (some days had to be an indoor walk). Gary often joined me, but he also rode his bike a lot more (2600 miles total last year). But I kept on walking… We also walked with another couple, two to three times a week, and that regular contact made a big difference for all of us. It kept our sanity; we like to say.
Going up…
Many times we hiked in parks and through the woods. Gary and I discovered John Latsch State Park as we were driving along the Mississippi River on a bright, sunny day in late-March. I noticed the typical brown state park sign. As we passed by it on our way to Winona, I did a quick Google search on the park. The only thing the park offered was one hike, but that hike was a unique one, climbing up a beautiful bluff along the river. It told of the fantastic view from the top, and… that the hike was all stairs!
From the top: looking south at Lock & Dam #5 as a train rumbles by.
That sounded interesting. We know enough to know that would not be an easy hike (up or down) but we decided to go for it. We hadn’t walked our daily walk so we turned off into the parking lot to John Latsch State Park. We donned our hiking shoes, hat, and poles so we were ready. As I climbed 600 steps (unofficial count by a co-hiker) I thought this would be an appropriate marker for the end of the one year of pandemic…to be discovering a new state park and hiking in it.
At the top: looking north…Gary near the edge.
At the top of the limestone bluff called Charity along the Mississippi River.
We climbed up and up…the wooden stairs were wide, and sometimes slanted at an angle, and one or two were wobbly. There was a railing for parts of the trail but I’m glad we had our hiking poles with us. We took our time and made it to the top of “Charity” the name of this particular bluff…named by steamboat captains. There are three large, limestone bluffs aside each other, along the river, and steamboat captains nicknamed them Charity, Hope and Faith and used them for navigational purposes. Great names indeed.
Going down….
After taking photos at the top there was a short loop trail that we hiked before descending down the steps. It was good “step exercise” and we were happy to have succeeded to make it to the top and back down again.
A railing was in place for parts of the “trail”.
My hope is that we’ve made it to the top of the Covid-19 pandemic peak, and we’re on our way down…to the end of it.
Last March (2020) when Covid-19 started infiltrating our world and we began to isolate ourselves, I decided it might be a good time to start knitting a prayer shawl. I didn’t have a specific person in mind as I started knitting. The finished shawl would go to our care pastor at church, to give to someone as needed.
I used yarn a friend had given to me. The yarn created a unique pattern. It made for an interesting prayer shawl that I hope will lift someone’s spirits.
Interesting yarn pattern.
As it turned out, knitting ended up not being something I was inclined to work on a lot during the pandemic. But, after almost a year, I finished the prayer shawl.
Years ago, I knit several prayer shawls…some for specific people, others for the pastor to give out. At that time, when there were several people knitting prayer shawls, a man from our congregation joined in knitting shawls. He happened to be my son’s mentor through a church program, and he gave a prayer shawl he had knitted to my son. It was a special blessing. I also received a prayer shawl when my mother died.
An old article from a Seventeen Magazine.
I don’t remember anyone showing me how to knit. I think I learned from a magazine article, when I was a teenager. I believe the magazine was titled Seventeen but I can’t find the magazine’s name (or date) anywhere on the article to confirm this. I still have this article in my knitting bag and sometimes refer to its simplistic instructions for knitting.
A brochure for Praying with a Prayer Shawl.
The brochure that used to be handed out with a prayer shawl (and maybe still is) begins; “A prayer shawl is intended to be a reminder of God’s ever-present love which is as near to you as your own body is to your sprit. It is a fit for every time and every occasion – joyful or sorrowful, for every season and circumstance of life – chose or unchosen, when you are weeping or when you are celebrating”…
It includes this scripture and a special prayer:
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. Psalm 139
I hope the finished prayer shawl will be a blessing to someone who needs some encouragement these days.
Madison, Wisconsin is a great halfway point between my house in Northfield and my friend’s house in Indiana, and it meets our destination criteria of a body of water, gardens and thrift and/or antique stores so we have enjoyed several trips there.
Olbrich Gardens…showing off many beautiful planters.
We traditionally take our annual trip in the spring (ever since 1989), with an occasional trip halfway through the year if we can fit it into our schedules. We have met in many different locations around the country but Madison is convenient destination for us.
Along the trail on a beautiful fall day.
This year we planned a trip in May, but because of the pandemic we delayed it, until finally we decided to go… six months later. It was a tough decision, as are a lot of decisions around COVID these days. We decided on Madison because it’s easy to get to. We were careful where we went and we wore our masks.
The sun lighting up the trees!
When we meet in Madison, we always include a trip to Olbrich Botanical Gardens. The gardens are a must see. Spring, summer or fall, Olbrich Gardens is always a special place to wander the trails and enjoy nature’s beauty.
The purple aster among the white birch is appealing to the eyes.
We had fun walking around the gardens with our masks…but not our facemasks. The first day together we found sparkly, purple eye masks, new and unopened, at a thrift store, so we each bought one to add a whimsical touch to our time together.
With mirth and laughter…
We decided Olbrich Gardens was the place to don our masks and find a photo op. So, when we arrived at the gardens off came our facemasks and on went our sparkly eye masks.
This framed print was hanging in an antique store and we liked the caption. It went with our whimsical mind-set.
Olbrich Gardens had a lot to offer at the end of October. There were still lovely flower arrangements and colorful trees to enjoy in their fall glory.
This tree was labeled Full Moon Maple. Love that name…love the color.
Bright sunshine shone down on us and its warmth embraced us. We took great delight strolling around in it.
I didn’t record the name of this unique berry bush. Yes, these are real, natural berries.
At one point during our afternoon a message popped up on my phone alerting me to a photo memory. I looked and it showedphotos from a Fall trip my friend and I had taken last year (2019) to Madison. The photos were from Olbrich Gardens and the date was exactly one year ago TO THE DAY. That was crazy! It felt like a confirmation. We reminisced, and recalled in 2019 it snowed the night before we visited the gardens so the ground and paths were covered with the white stuff. Not so this year.
Another striking planter…
Olbrich Gardens is a place to revisit again and again. Our trip turned out well. Although we shortened it, it was good to be together, in-person, to catch up with our lives. Someday we will not have to worry about COVID, but until then, a lot of decisions are heavy and difficult.
We have returned from a road trip to Colorado, to visit our youngest son and his family. We had a great time and good weather (hot but dry).
We were happy to watch the kids while our son and his wife took off for a few days. The first day of our time alone with the grandkids, we planned to go to Rocky Mountain National Park. Because of COVID-19 one has to make reservations to drive into the park, which we did long before we left for Colorado. This made the park less crowded than normal. What a perk!
The Rocky Mountains
Our time for entering the park was 10 am (with a grace period). It would take an hour from our son’s home to get to Estes Park, the entrance to RMNP. That morning, we were on our own to get the kids ready. After packing a picnic lunch, finding jackets, getting shoes and sunscreen, loading up the car and getting the kids settled in their car seats, our first stop was at the neighborhood gas station. We pulled up to the pump and stopped. After the busy morning I turned to the kids in the back seat and asked, “OK, how are you guys doing? Are you comfortable?”
Zoey (5) said, “yes” and Ezra (4) said – in all seriousness – “yes, but I’d be more comfortable with a donut!” It made us laugh out loud and we went into the station and bought some donuts!
The Old Fall River Road…one-way, gravel, narrow, along the edge, nine miles long.
The day went well. It was sunny with spectacular views. We drove on the Old Fall River Road, a one-way, gravel road which twists and turns its way up through the mountains.
At 12,005′
At the top we stopped at the visitor’s center and hiked the remaining Alpine Ridge Trail to 12,005’. We had brought some children’s binoculars for the kids and they were a big hit.
Zoey looking through the binoculars.
On our way down the mountain we drove along the Trail Ridge Road, a two-way, paved road. We stopped for lunch in a picnic area, and hiked on another trail along a river.
Forging a creek on a hike.
We had a lot of fun playing in Rocky Mountain National Park with our grandchildren.
It appears face masks will be part of the new normal as the Covid-19 pandemic has changed our lives forever. Face masks are already required in some stores and requested in many others. It is a safety measure to protect all of us from spreading the virus. We are all in this together.
I eked out two masks on my old sewing machine, which has seen better days.
Masks that tie around the head…they have nose wire and a pocket for a filter.
At the time elastic was hard to come by so I used old t-shirts for the ties, which was suggested and was a good alternative. The masks turned out OK and have served us well.
There are many folks in our town making masks. There is a person in charge of the operation. She sends emails with updates and has created a station at a convenient location downtown Northfield for mask making supplies. She raised funds, ordered supplies including blue filter fabric, elastic (which is available again) and other items. Most, if not all of the fabric, has been donated. Mask-makers go to the station to pick up what they need.
Cutting fabric into 7×9 inch and 5×7 inch pieces.
Since I feel I cannot sew nice masks with my machine I decided to help by cutting fabric. The 100% cotton fabric needs to be washed, ironed and cut into different shapes (depending on style of mask and whether it is for an adult or child.)
Beautiful masks my friend makes with elastic…they have a filter already sewn into mask, and a nose wire.
I was talking with a friend the other day and we were lamenting about wearing masks because you cannot tell the expression on other’s faces when they have their masks on. When you cannot see smiles you miss a lot…so we thought it would be great to have masks with see-through space so you could see more of a person’s expression.
The very next morning on the news I read about see-through masks…made especially for those who need to lip-read.
photo off internet
Hmmm…Our good idea – already conceived, and created – by another. I think of the saying…”Necessity is the mother of invention.”
I saw this masked bunny in a window display shortly after Easter…
I have no doubt face masks will become a fashion statement. Soon.
Each year I have a book printed of my blog postings as a birthday present to myself. March 31stis my cut off for the previous twelve months so I wanted to record a little of what’s been happening in our world with this global pandemic.
An example of “social distancing.” I watched these two friends keep their distance as they chatted after putting their groceries in their cars. They walked toward each other but stopped to keep at least 6″ distance and visited for several minutes.
Life as we knew it changed dramatically this month (March 2020). About March 13 the WHO (World Health Organization) declared a Pandemic. Within two weeks we went from normal, busy activities to being ordered, on March 27 (State of Minnesota), to “stay at home” to keep the COVID-19 virus from spreading. Restaurants have closed and non-essential businesses have closed. People have been asked to work from home. Schools have gone to online teaching…no children are meeting in schools. Our church services have been cancelled and services are online now.
We’ve learned new terms such as “social distancing” – keeping six feet away from others when talking with or meeting a person, and “flattening the curve” – trying to slow down the number of people who are getting infected with the virus to avoid overloading the medical system. We are learning how to use online video applications such as Zoom to stay connected with others.
Some activities in our personal world right now…jigsaw puzzles, the game Bananagrams. And see “Cool Blue” the blue kangaroo in the window? People are putting stuffed animals in their windows so children can have stuffed animals to look for when they go for walks. I love that idea.
I’m grateful we are allowed to get outside and walk and bike. I walk daily. Gary continues to either bike or walk.
Many of us are experiencing grief…the loss of control in so many areas of our lives. No one knows what comes next. And no one has the answers. This is unprecedented.
There will be many financial repercussions too. This is a difficult story.
I lean on one of my favorite scripture verses:
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, Lean not on your own understanding Acknowledge the Lord in all your ways And he will direct your paths. Proverbs 3: 5-6
Coloring is another calming activity for me.
An article I read recently labeled the next generation as “Gen C’s”… C for coronavirus… since the world will never be the same from now on. Gen C’s will only know life after the coronavirus… life after the ”new normal” sets in.
Our world has turned upside down! I wonder what the new normal will be…
I’m used to celebrating spring on March 20 so I was surprised to learn that today, March 19, 2020, is the first day of spring this year. The spring equinox begins tonight at 10:49 pm.
The COVID-19 pandemic is on all of our minds these days…the uncertainty of it and the bigger picture of the fallout…is scary. I will not be posting much about it…it’s too overwhelming…but I am grateful for my faith to see me through.
The clouds have been particularly beautiful and unusual in the past two weeks and I’ve captured a few photos.
Psalm 147: 7 & 8 Sing to the Lord with grateful praise; make music to our God on the harp. He covers the sky with clouds; he supplies the earth with rain and makes grass grow on the hills.
Here’s to spring! May it lift our spirits a bit during these difficult days.
