Friday, April 3: Today was to have been packed with Feast Waikato events. I’m mourning the loss of this festival celebrating the best of Waikato food and hospo talent, and thinking about all the restaurants, cafes, bars and producers hit so hard by this crisis. Kia kaha to those who water and feed us so well. You will be back, we will be back.
I walk locally, shop at the superette, talk to neighbours, and to friends and family on the phone. I’m in touch with my nieces and nephew, my sister’s children; I have this huge need to stay close to cherished family, mine and Bill’s.
Late afternoon, there are drinks in our subdivision’s shared carpark. It is the perfect venue for our households to gather at a safe distance, raise a glass, and enjoy real-time company. There is an excellent turnout, laughter and stories about how we’re all coping. There are many offers of help and support. “Let me know if there is anything you need?” is the phrase of the day. It is immensely cheering and our small community abounds with goodwill. We’ll do it again next week.
I’m still reading The Mirror and the Light. While I’m in awe of Hilary Mantel’s prodigious research and beautiful writing, the book gets darker and darker at each page. The references to the bubonic plague, and untold deaths, are eerily familiar. I will do the last 300 in daylight! I need something brilliantly mind-numbing after this.
Small miracles:
1. Discovering that what I fear is a crack in the ceiling of my entrance porch is in fact a wiggly line of dusty grime.
2. Getting a handle on the WordPress program for this blog.
