Further in Summer than the Birds —
Pathetic from the Grass —
A minor Nation celebrates
It’s unobtrusive Mass.
No Ordinance be seen —
So gradual the Grace
A gentle Custom it becomes —
Enlarging Loneliness —
Antiquest felt at Noon —
When August burning low
Arise this spectral Canticle
Repose to typify —
Remit as yet no Grace —
No furrow on the Glow,
But a Druidic Difference
Enhances Nature now —
~ Emily Dickinson
(The Poems of Emily Dickinson, #895)
New London County now has 1,499 confirmed cases of COVID-19. Of those, 3 people are in the hospital and 106 have lost their lives. That’s 66 new cases but 3 fewer in the hospital since August 9. College students are returning to their dorms and time will tell how well they do with social distancing.
It is hard not to worry, isn’t it? The kids in my neighborhood all received computers this week and will be remote learning.
Crickets make everything better.
It is hard not to worry. I was so relieved to learn that my granddaughter will be starting first grade remotely down there in North Carolina. The cricket canticle grows louder here every night, reassuring us that the seasons are still on track, even if our own world is turned upside down!
Here too, and in the daytime we’re getting a little buzz from cicadas but not nearly as much as usual. We have had some years of significant flooding and I’m wondering if a lot of them died while under the sodden ground.
North Carolina is beautiful, isn’t it? I am glad to hear that your granddaughter will be safe.
North Carolina is lovely, but too hot and humid in the summer, so we try to visit late in the fall and early in the spring. I especially enjoyed it when my daughter took me to the North Carolina Botanical Garden in Chapel Hill and when my sister-in-law took me to Sandhills Horticultural Gardens in Pinehurst. So many new (to me) plants and trees to see and enjoy. I love the loblolly pines.
Oh I do too. Aren’t they cool? And the big woodpeckers that call them home are neat too. Did I mention we considered living there? I think the heat and humidity would have bothered us as well. We should go back to visit the places you mention~they sound lovely.
The loblolly pines are cool, I love the bark, it reminds me of shingles on a house. If I ever go again I will have to look for the woodpeckers.
I didn’t know you thought of living there, but it makes sense. North Carolina is a paradise for creative people. 🙂 Once we spent a rainy afternoon exploring all the amazing little pottery studios and shops in Seagrove…
A poignant and positive post in these dire times. I have stopped following the stats, it’s just too hard. But, as Melissa points out, it’s hard not to worry. Stay safe.
Thank you, Otto. For me, I have to follow the stats to keep my imagination from running away with me. We are staying in our bubble and hope to ride this pandemic out here. I hope you are doing well and staying safe, too.
That painting lifted my heart
Isn’t it wonderful, Leelah? I can almost smell the grass and hear the cricket I imagine the boy could be looking for.
Good luck with college students socially distancing, I am sure. They are coming back to school in our neck of the woods and already there are more cases in nearby towns. Deep breaths…listen to the crickets…
Keeping my fingers crossed, Kathy, and reminding myself to breathe deeply. Some students have already been expelled from UConn for holding a huge party in a dorm. So sorry to hear you are getting an uptick of cases in your area. Please stay safe, my friend. I never thought I’d appreciate cricket hymns this much…
There’s something very calming about “The boys on the grass”, a memory of carefree, pre-covid days perhaps?
Good memories. The grass is a universe of busy and interesting tiny creatures, as long as one avoids sitting or reclining on an ant hill or on the entrance to a bee’s nest. 🙂 (One of our cats did this – I still remember him sitting there while bees were circling around him.)