Moods.....

My daughter shared a post from her friend Jennifer Wright and I've been thinking about it all day....for several reasons.

"People talk about caterpillars becoming butterflies as though they just go into a cocoon, slap on wings, and are good to go. Caterpillars have to dissolve into a disgusting pile of goo to become butterflies. So if you're a mess wrapped up in blankets right now, keep going." These few sentences resonate with me today.

Yesterday I had lunch with two friends....something we try to do every couple months or so...and usually we call it our "laugh therapy sessions". We did have a really good visit at a nearby restaurant and heard about the ones son's wedding and got to see some of the pictures. It was a beautiful day! We usually find time to share book titles, or movies to rent and discuss some current affairs, or recent travel experiences....but yesterday we just wandered through more random thoughts and that lovely wedding day.

Walking back along the sidewalk to get to our apartments my one friend said she was still just feeling kind of "off kilter" and "out of sorts" and we two agreed. Even after we hope to have gotten through the worse of the COVID-time, we all realize that this virus is now a forever part of our world and is still "tainting" the way we look at almost everything. I find myself second-guessing all of my plans. Should we go to that restaurant now? Will most people at the movie matinee be wearing masks? Can we really plan a big trip for a few months from now and feel secure in booking plane tickets? It's just a sort of greyness that moves through the day with all three of us.....in different ways.

I'm not feeling like a pile of goo and I am not wrapped up in blankets.....but I also sense I am a long way from ever feeling like a butterfly. Dave and I got our booster shots yesterday and while my arm is a little sore, maybe by spring my wings will spread and I'll feel more like "my old self". In the meantime I will enjoy our occasional laugh therapy lunches and meeting new friends in our apartment building and exploring the Eastside  neighborhood of Milwaukee.

Here's a toast to butterflies! May they get through the caterpillar and goo stages and emerge with colorful, strong wings....and all my friends and me too.