Reluctantly I End

Today marks the end of the annual Slice of Life Story Challenge, the sixth one for me. When it began thirty days ago, I wasn't sure I was up to the challenge this year. I signed up at the last minute, and my first blog post was titled, "Reluctantly I Begin." In it, I wrote, 

So I begin again, not sure that I will be able to make it through the month, not sure that the right words will materialize when I need them to. Such is life, I suppose. We never know what lies ahead or if we'll have the strength to meet the challenges that inevitably arise along the way. 

But onward we go.

I didn't know at the time the magnitude of the challenges that were going to face all of us over the course of the month. Coronavirus still seemed like something "out there." The news was tragic, but it wasn't here. 

Until it was. 

Suddenly, it was everywhere and we were all dealing with the reality of people getting sick, some even dying, and all of us being called to do our part to stop the spread. This meant cancelled vacations, staying home, and closing schools. It meant for us educators that we needed to learn a whole new way to teach, and quick. 

Looking back at this tumultuous month, it seems fortuitous that the Slice of Life Story Challenge was occurring while the world exploded around us. Here, we found a community not just of fellow writers but fellow comrades grappling with the profound changes thrust upon us all. We were able to share our stories and share our fears and share our inspiration. 

As the days wore on, many of us found ourselves shrinking away from writing about anything having to do with the pandemic. There had to be something else to write about. We would try for something a little more lighthearted, a little more normal. Yet, we were drawn back to it time and time again. How could we not write about it? Every aspect of our lives has been impacted by this historic event, right down to the most mundane tasks such as grocery shopping. 

We should be writing about it. We are recording history in the making. The stories of our lives, thanks to the coronavirus, have become the story of a people battling an unseen enemy. There is no doubt that this a moment for the history books. Our children will tell their children about the days of forced isolation and toilet paper shortages the way many of our parents told us stories of life during World War II. By then, they will know how the story ends. Right now, we are still living in days of uncertainty. We have no way of knowing how this will all play out or what further challenges await us.

But we have hope. We have faith. We have each other.

So, onward we go.