By Annie Turner

   There have been many articles about what folks learned during the pandemic, but I want to add my small perspective, in hopes that it may resonate with you. Because it is not quite over. We still have some time to go before we re-enter our lives. And I am hoping we never go back to what some call “normal,” because that adversely affects BIPOC and poor communities.

    Ok, take a deep breath, religion is on the horizon. Duck!

    1/ In a sermon of Fr. Mike’s which I listened to from the “Hallow” app (Catholic), he said, “Fear sometimes can be an opportunity for something new.” 

Think about that. Think about the fear we have all felt during the last year: that we would get sick, might die, or have irreversible damage.

    What have I seen as an opportunity here?  My old friend, Paula D’Arcy (retreat leader, writer, founder of the Red Bird Foundation) wrote a book called, “A New Set of Eyes.”  Paula suffered the death of her two year-old daughter and husband in a drunk driving accident many years ago (read, “Song for Sarah”), and out of this terrible loss, she has gained much wisdom. What would happen, she asks, if we all began to see through a new set of eyes?

–I would see that the sun through the birds’ wings flying over our deck is a prayer. Not like a prayer, but actually is a prayer.

–I would know that birds, squirrels, chipmunks, bear, deer and more are made from stardust–just as I am. We are one spirit. When a female hummingbird, after being knocked to the deck by a male who then stood on her, flew to my black shirt and perched there for 9 minutes, I wondered how this could be. Paula answered me succinctly, “We are all one spirit, Ann.” This is what Indigenous communities have known for millennia, but colonials and their descendants have not listened.

2/ Second lesson for me is this: Listen more than you talk.  When I speak with my honeys, pause before replying and take a deep breath. I must be more like the Dine who teach how rude it is to interrupt, how to take time for words to sink in before answering. 

 Make silence my friend, for–oh-oh, more religion on the horizon–Thomas Merton tells us that it is only in silence that God speaks to us. (Probably from his, New Seeds of Contemplation.)

3/ Third lesson during this hard year:  There is little that a cup of strong tea or coffee and a hot pumpkin, coconut, chocolate chip muffin will not soothe.  Notice I did not say “cure,” as that would be untrue. Some things are too hard, too painful for this to make a difference. But it sure as hell settles things down within, calming that anxious voice saying, “What’s next? Can I cope? How can we go on like this?”  I have also found that salted dark chocolate can help the willies.

—I would also add that listening to the song, “Perfect,” sung by Ed Sheeran and Andrea Bocelli can comfort heartache and bring joy. Watching them both sing reminded me of how music can soothe the tortured heart. Try it.

4/ Seeing real people in the flesh fills our hearts.  Over the summer we had a number of friends and family up for good food on our deck, and it gave me such joy. Recently, we even had two friends up for coffee and muffins on our deck in front of the warming fire pit.

 Still cold, but so good to be with people and actually hug them. (We’ve had vaccines.) This reminded me of how much we all need hugs, touching, and shining faces. We are made for community.

5/ It is never too late to try something new, to expand one’s horizons.  Those who know me on FB see how many vegan posts I have shared in the past year; how it has helped my energy after cancer and chemo and helped me feel healthier. I also joined a book group led by the fabulous Rev. Andrea Ayvazian (also known as “double A” by one member of the Alden Baptist Church), reading “Jesus and the Disinherited,” by Howard Thurman.  I am learning so much about what it is like to be a disinherited person and community. The group members are from the Alden Baptist Church, bringing so much wisdom from their lived experiences as people of color.

6/ Faith has helped me and kept me grounded.  Also: Dan Rather’s “Steady”; Heather Cox Richardson; Zoom UCC Church; live FB Mass; and Alden Baptist Church’s live FB feed at 10:00 Sundays, with Pastor Love and amazing singing. (You have to friend them first to access this.)  I need faith. I need to feel God’s hands holding me up, whispering in my ears, “All will be well, all will be well, and all manner of things shall be well.” Remember when Julian of Norwich wrote these words, she knew: wars, plagues, famine, disease, persecutions, and more. But the take away is this: if God is walking with us, we will survive. I know this in the very cells of my body.

Enough said. Although I might add that the frisky presence of a small Jack Russell in our house has kept us sane. Snuggles, pets, walks up the road, and listening to her snore. Doggy love.

If you wish to join the conversation–and please do!–post a comment and wait for it to appear. I have to vet it first as admin of this site. Couragio. We shall survive, and if Biden is right, by July 4th we may all be cooking on the barbeque with friends and families in our backyards.

This post is from Williamsburg author Ann Turner’s faith, cancer and survival blog Faith is My Operating System.