Light in the Middle of the Tunnel

Hanalei Bay yesterday with Bali Hai in background.

"Lots of walks. Talking to chickens. Drawing pictures of the monkey pod tree."

This morning I happened to eavesdrop on a conversation of Barbara's and her professional associates back home. She summed up our situation rather well. Another zoom meeting. They seem to turn into personal sharing sessions.

Yesterday I zoomed with my writers' group. I had the pleasure of listening to a nostalgic, mid-Western story about a blind piano teacher; an incredible account of the completion of a solitary walk across the Sahara Desert; and a poignant personal poem about dealing with the pandemic.

Fauci instructs
Trump confuses
Captain Crozier warns
The Queen encourages
Boris Johnson recovers
John Prine dies.   -- Nancy Lewis

On Sunday we attended a zoom party with our three daughters and their children. It was even better than last week. We all were a little looser and aching to laugh. It turned into a talent show when grandson Finn, ten-gallon hat on his two-gallon head, hit the dance floor, stepping out to "Old Town Road" by Nas x.

Whoa!

He's got da moves!

He pranced and hopped and flung his arms like a calf-roping cowboy. Being four-foot tall added to the fun. We were all hoots and smiles.

It felt good to laugh with our family again, as we did many years ago when we were all growing up inside a tiny house on a circle, then again when we moved into a bigger place on the creek.

Back then our family anthem became "Love Shack" by the B-52's.

Humpback whale breaches outside of Hanalei  Bay

Recently, I goofed off here in our condo. Suddenly at the behest of a Hawaiian mele (song) on the radio, I decided to dance hula.

I didn't know that Barbara had her iPhone camera on "video" until I turned toward her.

"Let me see that," I said. I looked, and I laughed hard.

Following serious and delirious thought, I decided what the hey, and posted it on Facebook. The shock effect, I think, created a long string of mirthful comments and self-assuring "likes."

There were jokes about it going viral, the idea of which, was even funnier.

We're all in our own little worlds, tucked away, sheltering, wondering.

I hope we can hold on to these simple, wonderful surprises that bring us together.

Call it the light in the middle of the tunnel.