This week

I had intended to put a post together about how beautiful New England has been during this pandemic spring. Even those of us who suffer from pollen will agree that May has been lovely. June probably will be, too.

But this week it’s hard to focus on anything except the rage and sorrow of our country.

You all know what happened. You know what’s been said, and done. You don’t need me to tell you. (I wrote it all down, of course. Then I deleted it. I’d just be repeating what others have said much better.) Besides, people like us need to be listening.

I went into a bit of a tailspin.  Here are the things I did to pull myself out of it. I picked some articles from those lists about black lives, and am reading them. I turned my attention to the hopeful people – Biden, Cuomo, the protesters and activists. I donated to some fund(s) aimed at making things better. (It’s the only practical way I can see to make any difference, given who and where we are.) And, as always, I’m doing my very small bit to elect a President (and Congress) who will at least try.

I suspect most of you are already doing those things, or plan to. So I’ll just add one other thing that helped, not of my own doing: I walked around town and saw yards and streets displaying not only beautiful flowering trees but also strong, positive, supportive signs. The one up top is from a neighbor’s yard. The one below is on the front of the local church. Several neighbors have put up  Black Lives Matter signs, including one that’s hand lettered and held together with duct tape. I feel lucky to live here.