sorryless

In The Darkness Came A Light

Sorryless78 Comments

Kim Kardashian called. She wants her first world problems back.

Okay, maybe it’s not quite as dreadful or hopeless as Vladimir Putin was hoping it might turn out. Unless you hang out on the Twitter or Reddit sites, which I do not recommend you do unless dystopian soap opera plots are your jam. And just so you know, I’m not saying Vlad the Impaler of Hope had anything to do with this virus. His powers are limited to horse back riding without a shirt, eating cinnamon encrusted beef jerky without need for water and fucking with our elections.

Europe currently has a “Do Not Disturb” sign up as it has been hit especially hard. Tom Hanks and his lovely wife Rita are literally castaways as we speak. The Utah Jazz have gotten more pub than if they would have won the NBA title simply by having a couple of players test positive. Americans of all stations and status from coast to coast are providing an ever expanding face to this virus.

You know things have gotten serious when sports get shut down, because nothing gets in the way of our sports. Not two World Wars. Not the assassination of a President. Not even September 11th. But the dominoes which began with the cancellation of March Madness has crept into the NBA and NHL suspending play while the MLB has scrapped spring training and is moving back opening day.

Without benefit of games, ESPN has had to rely on journalism. Which is another way of saying that ratings have plummeted. Casinos are closing. Retailers are posting limits on toilet paper and hand sanitizer purchases. Web MD is currently a more popular site than Porn Hub.

If you’re young, consider this a vacation from the every day. Your immune systems are assembly line peach in comparison to us folks of a certain age. I’m in that notoriously provocative middle earth population of peeps who consider sneezing a four letter word. And if this tunnel doesn’t start giving us a little sunlight, we may have to resort to punching anyone who coughs inside our bubble. Nothing personal, of course.

And really, that’s the whole thing right there, isn’t it? This isn’t personal, unless we really want to make it so. Because right now, as a species, we still have the ability to stoke that fledgling spirit inside us that believes humanity is a pretty okay place to be. Even on its shittiest days, the world usually gives us something to latch onto. Hope really is riding shotgun, idiomatically speaking. And now more than ever, this is happening if we extricate ourselves from dark web searches for toilet paper and hand sanitizers. If we just let ourselves consider that human beings have been through a hell of a lot worse than this. Hell, we somehow survived the election of 2016, after all.

Let’s just sit back and take a deep breath, and let’s consider someone who has tested positive. Let’s think about what their families and friends are going through right now before we whine about not having picked up extra beer and chips in the event we’re holed up for a couple weeks time. Let’s just put ourselves in someone else’s head for a simple moment, and do something novel inside a time when looking out for yourself has become status. Let’s pray for them. That they make it through this thing with nothing more than a lousy t-shirt. Humanity is the only inventory we should be concerned with right now. Because to my way of thinking, the darkest of times is when the light is needed most. So it’s okay if our grocery list consists of a little humility, a little compassion and a whole lot of gratitude.

There’s a town called Siena, tucked inside a hilly region of Tuscany between the valleys and the clouds. Italy has been hit especially hard by COVID-19 and so the residents of this charming little medieval arrangement of castles and cathedrals have been relegated to their homes as a result. But rather than bemoan this solitary existence fraught with ever more daunting scenarios, the people of Siena fixed themselves on a different approach. On the night of March 13th, one of the quarantined residents let loose with a song that floated from one window to another to another . . until the entire street was draped in music.

So this one little song from this one little town, I gotta think maybe it was telling us something. Maybe it was telling us that to dwell on the bold font headlines of gloom and doom is to miss the point. Maybe instead of focusing on what we are inside these moments, maybe we should focus on something much more powerful.

What we can be.

 

78 thoughts on “In The Darkness Came A Light”

  1. It would be nice to see us all come together in a spirit of support and consideration and respect, wouldn’t it. To accept a blip in our lives of a few weeks and then get back to our regularly scheduled programming of rage and discord. Just for a few weeks … peace and love. Or something like that.

    Liked by 2 people

  3. B,

    Yes, Yes and YES.

    In English, we say to get our head out of our ass; in French, we say to stop focussing on our own bellybutton; either way, the meaning’s the same, isn’t it? Stop with the “me, myself and I” attitude and think of your fellow man/woman/child.

    So what if we have to stay home for two weeks (or more) if doing that means the virus gets contained. We can use this time to do things we don’t normally do. For some, it’s just sitting together for a meal, watching a movie, playing games, organizing files, whatever.

    And yes, to putting ourselves in the shoes of those who do have the disease. Imagine their fright that they may be one of those whose immune system is weak. Yes, a bunch of peeps (most, in fact) will have nary a symptom to bother them; but there are those who will get the full brunt of it and end up in hospital and could even die. And we have seen how the numbers have doubled in the blink of an eye in those places, like Italy and now Spain, which did not react as quickly as they should have.

    That video is a beauty and, here is another from Firenze (Florence) of a dude singing Nessun Dorma – my favourite aria. https://youtu.be/3LMIIJdpmes

    Thank you, B. You always have the right words for the right times.

    Q

    Liked by 1 person

    • Q,

      And jes?

      As far as belly buttons, in times like these it’s important to remember there are many others whose belly buttons need more attention than our own.

      We’re all in the same fix, so we COULD bitch and moan about it but what’s that going to achieve? Other than a whole lot of nothing, I mean.

      I worry about my kids and my peeps, I don’t worry about myself. I’ve been through plenty and I’m like a rusty old Chevy. I take the hits and dings but I don’t stop kicking it up.

      There are so many videos that have come out, of people singing in different parts of the world, having taken their lead from Siena. There’s also one of a guy who conducts an aerobics class from a rooftop while others follow along across the street in their apartments. People being people, being human.

      Thank YOU Q.

      B

      Liked by 1 person

      • Jes!

        Indeed. Ours is not all that fascinating anyway…

        Exactomundo. All bitching does is cause noise pollution.

        Well, you are a tough bugger – but that doesn’t mean you are immune. So how ’bout this? I’ll add you to MY list of peeps I can worry about, along with my family.

        Yes, the videos are popping up all over and it’s such a beautiful thing! A woman I know opened her house to give her aerobics class but that kinda defeats the purpose, doesn’t it? She didn’t get the memo, methinks…

        MWAH!

        Liked by 1 person

        • For the HWIN!

          I am not a belly button person anyways.

          And we have enough noise pollution as it is, so yeah, it’s time for peeps to put their pipes on mute for a tad.

          You worry about me, I worry about you and that way we are even. Deal?

          People are still going to be people. I don’t hold it against her, even if it ain’t helping the cause. It’s just further evidence that peeps feel the need to forge a connection when times ain’t so great.

          MUAH!!

          Like

          • Woot!

            Neither am I, to tell the truth.

            Bloody hell do we have more than enough.

            That’s poifect. Deal!

            Yes, this is true. Her heart is in the right place.

            MWAH!!

            Liked by 1 person

          • Woot, there it is!

            Not surprised we agree on this.

            We really do. And hopefully come November, we have one less loud mouth going around clogging up the atmosphere.

            I love it when a plan comes together.

            We need to think in common sense terms though, you’re right.

            MUAH!!

            Like

  4. Beautiful post, Pilgrim. It is time to think of others. As a 78-year-old, asthmatic, with infusion therapy-induced immune deficiency, I was willing to keep going out as long as people behaved themselves. You know, sneeze into a tissue, wipe down exercise equipment after use and all the social distancing methods. Monday was my last day of putting up with the arrogant dumb shits of this world.(These are the same ass-hats loading cases of toilet paper into their SUV) I simply can’t afford to be at the mercy of ignorance any longer. I have been at this immune thing for ten years and have learned how to stay healthy. I feel sorry for those who don’t take this pandemic seriously. They are jeopardizing all of us. Well done, Marc.

    Liked by 1 person

    • You do what’s best for you right now, John. I want you around for a good long time. So I mean it when I say stay safe and take care.

      I take it you’re secure enough in your manhood to accept my virtual hug? Well good, because you’re getting one right now.

      Liked by 1 person

      • Hahaha. I agree on Errol Flynn for sure but here’s the story. Back when Marc had his Drinks Well with Others blog he and I got to sending messages back and forth. I would do unfortunate imitations of John Wayne and he called me “Sheriff.” In my John Wayne persona I naturally responded with calling him, Pilgrim. The term Pilgrim was used in westerns to referr to easterners newly arrived in the west. John Wayne used the term “pilgrim” in two films. The first was the 1962 film The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and the second was the following year in McClintock. I know this is more than you wanted to know but you certainly deserve the full story. Marc now referrs to me as Boss or Sheriff depending on the sitution. I also want to say I have missed visiting your blog, Susannah and finally figured out that there was a glitch in my notifications. I fixed it and will be back since I so enjoy your take on NY. I read your last but didn’t comment. I hope you are doing okay with the mess we are all in right now. Being an old guy with a medically compromised immune system I have finally given up and am resigned to staying home. Thank you so much for the question. I hope i didn’t bore your socks off.

        Liked by 3 people

  5. I can always count on your seriously relevant humor during seriously difficult times. The Web MD is a more popular site than PornHub is classic and made me laugh out loud. And you’re right, if we survived the 2016 election cycle and elections, we can endure anything.
    I do love those videos from Italy, especially the flash mobs singing from their balconies and rooftops. Those Italians know how to throw a party. I’ve been wondering what the new birth rate is going to be in nine months…:)

    Liked by 3 people

    • When I lose my sense of humor, I really WILL be at the end of the world. And I don’t plan on that ever happening.

      If anything comes of it, you’re right . . the babies. And maybe, just maybe . . a new President come November. That would be great too.

      Thank you muchly, George.

      Liked by 1 person

  8. All sensible and well stated (and humorously so).😊 I hope that people will be considerate and caring as we go through this rough patch. I feel bad for our local service people – this is a very tourist-driven economy here and many people work several jobs. As long as I can, I will still go out to eat sometimes. I think the days are numbered. My TP supply is getting dire, though.😕

    Liked by 2 people

    • People have to keep on keeping on, and you’re right, I hope humanity prevails. I get that everybody is on edge, but that’s when cooler heads must prevail. We don’t need to be thinking about the “or else”.

      Thank you Eilene.

      Liked by 1 person

  9. Humor is the ticket through all this. Quoting KK as if she were Emily Dickinson made me laugh when I thought my tank was pretty much empty.

    When I heard they may shelter New York City, my optimism flatlined. I’ll feel like Tarzan in a cage if that happens, my new catch phrase.

    When I think Kim owns Jackie’s tank watch, then my humor comes back for an encore. Thanks, Errol. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

  10. You know, we are at our best when we pull together. I actually had the pleasure of being at a grocery store a few weeks back when we were on the cusp of what was to come. I could not believe the simple kindness and patience shown to one another. Where I thought there would be chaos there was solidarity.

    Here are some highlights:
    – Everyone was helping one another place items on the conveyor.
    – People were letting those with only a few items check out before them.
    – One woman who had a few packages of toilet paper in her cart shared with those you were moments too late and came away with none.

    Sorta our Italy song! Stay healthy and kind everyone!

    Liked by 1 person

    • I hope we understand that calm will ensure that we prevail. Because I agree with you, we need to remain that way, especially since we have no idea where things go from here.

      That there is our Italy song, amen to that sister! 🙂

      Peace and love

      Liked by 1 person

  11. Amen, hallelujah brother. A friend posting her about her reality when 4 years ago she was given the message, “So sorry…you have cancer.” Being asked to self quarantine or maintain social distancing, well trust me, it can be done and you will be fine. You will even be fine without 75 rolls of TP and 125 bottles of hand sanitizer. I could go on and on…

    Personally, I’m growing weary of those complaining that bars/concert halls/etc. are closed. Yes this is a change for many of us but the world doesn’t revolve around our petty desires. We must try to make the best out of this crappy situation and think big picture. Bottom line, life is really short people, stop whining about inconvenient stuff.

    Liked by 1 person

    • So very true Monika. Too many peeps are concerning themselves with all the wrong things. We have to take a deep breath, consider those around us. We have to be grateful for what we have and not dwell on the things that are currently unavailable to us.

      We SHOULD do this every day, but yanno . . .

      Liked by 1 person

      • If there is a great depression or this gets a lot worse, a whole lotta people will not get through it well. When I get down, I stop and take a deep breath and internally counsel myself…ok, enough…stop being self absorbed and go look for something…anything that’s positive. You’d be surprised what you can find. ☮︎ ❤︎

        Liked by 1 person

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