CATHOLIC BROAD GIVES A SHOUT-OUT

   I remember years back after 9/11, hearing a homily from our priest at the time in the beautiful St. Mary's Church, now closed. He said, "Doesn't it blow your mind the acts of kindness and generosity we've seen?" He held up the painting someone had done of the towers crumbling, with many angels descending to help and comfort.

   So, too, at this dire time in our nation's history, in the world's history, we are seeing:  hospital workers, doctors, nurses, scrubbers, morgue workers, grocery store clerks, bus drivers, subway personnel, essential retail folks, delivery people, and so much more literally taking their lives in their hands so WE can live. It gives me chills just writing this. Of course, we also know that folks at the bottom of the pay scale and people of color, Indigenous peoples, and Latinos and Latinas are effected even more, with higher death rates. (Mostly due to living near polluted areas, having more underlying health issues due to our crappy health system, lacking access to running water, and "simply" living in crowded, poor neighborhoods.)

   I am a privileged white woman, born after the end of World War II. On the recent anniversary of VE day, I saw celebrations with clips from Prime Minister Churchill's victory address. (And doesn't he have an odd accent?) The pictures of thousands of Londoners crowded into the Metro tunnels to keep safe during the Blitz give me courage. They survived the Blitz, I am guessing we will also survive Covid-19. 

Another picture was of a little girl holding tight to her doll after her house had been destroyed. An entire Double-Decker red London bus sank into a bomb crater. Unbelievable.

  I realize we are not enduring the Blitz, but we are living through a modern plague, and it is just dire. In our country we are now over  80,000 deaths from the virus, probably more as some of the early cases were not recorded; shortages of PPEs (thanks Jared Kushner and your mob-boss father-in-law); hard to find masks; and some hospitals still being overwhelmed.

 I read that New Orleans, Chicago, and NY City are doing much better in controlling the outbreaks. We can thank Cuomo among others for this, and so many other heroic folks.

  Two of my dear friends down the road are ER doctors in a larger town nearby. The cases have dwindled there, thankfully, and the ER doctor told me how supportive the hospital staff are of each other. Even suited up, with goggles and masks, they hug and share the love. Another member of my wider family is a doctor at a bigger hospital nearby, sometimes in the ICU. I keep them all in prayer, hoping that we come out on the other end of this plague somewhat intact. Many will not, of course, and I blame Trump, the GOP enablers, our sorry Senate, and sheer corruption for this state of affairs.

   But my mind is blown by acts of kindness. People sharing groceries; folks going shopping for the elderly; one woman therapist posting on FB with tips for helping your kids through the lockdown (Alice Barber, brilliant, check her out); church doing virtual Zoom meetings to keep in touch with the faithful;

 doctors and nurses gloved, in PPE, with goggles and N95 masks, holding the hands of dying patients or getting an iPad so folks can see their loved ones at the end. There seems to be no end to this stream of loving kindness, and I need to see this when we are seeing other acts of cruelty and insanity. I am holding fast to love. I believe that at the core of many of us, this is who we are. And that at the end, this love and generosity will show us a new way to be, a new way of living, and a new way of caring for our beautiful planet.