Greetings from the Hammershack, where we are on day four of our isolation in an attempt to #FlattenTheCurve of the novel corona virus, Covid-19.

By order of our governor, all schools were shut down beginning Tuesday (if they hadn’t already) and for many folks that means trying to homeschool their kids. We feel very fortunate that the charter school Huck attends was uniquely set up to move to a “virtual school” model because they already issue each student a Chromebook with which they submit their projects and take tests online. This week Huck has been rolling out of bed and into his daily mentor meeting and setting goals and knocking them down without changing out of his pj’s. He seems to like it more- no bathroom pass needed!

Morgan has devoted this week to a tedious and frustrating project that should pay off with something really cool. I think I will not write about it until it’s done, but suffice it to say, you would not want to pay his hourly rate for this in your own home. Plus, it’s hell on his body, lots of bending and kneeling.

I had to make the difficult decision this week to cancel all of my appointments because what I was reading said it was the right thing to do. As of yesterday I believe the governor basically called it as well: non-essential medical procedures should be postponed. I could be carrying the disease, and so could my clients, without knowing it. Don’t want that on my conscience! For the moment I am not afraid of the loss of income; I figure the entire world is confronting this thing, there will be a way. Plus, I don’t expect the government to come after me for the money I owe in self-employment tax anytime soon, so I have a little buffer. I have done a couple of Somatic Experiencing sessions via video chat this week, which I had never done before but have now added (at a reduced rate) to my offerings on my booking site. Adaptability is key! Last night I gave Morgan a much-needed massage (see previous paragraph), and I hope to get Huck on the table this weekend.

This week it has been absolutely glorious outside. I have been out in our yard for the past three days weeding, planting, mulching, enjoying the sun. The mulching is hard work, I am scraping up rotted wood chips from the garden paths and throwing them in the planting beds. I am at this moment taking a break because, ouch! Fortunately I have a 4pm Pilates class via Zoom this evening to help me rebalance my body.

I was reminded last weekend that we exist because our ancestors survived unimaginable difficulties before us. War, hunger, disease, massive social and economic changes- people whose blood we carry endured them all. We can learn a lot from them, and we will learn a lot ourselves as we figure out what to do next. I am praying that we find ourselves capable of making some big changes we thought we couldn’t make for the sake of our ecosystems and all living things on the planet. I would love for us to come to some new reckonings with the ways we place value in our economic systems. A girl can dream.

I hope that you are all taking good care of yourselves, your families, and your communities. We are counting our blessings and sending ❤️.