Today the weather was perfect. I spent quite a bit of time just enjoying the sun, trees, birds, flowers and it was a pretty restful Sunday. Yet a lot of our world was not enjoying the weather or the beauty of nature. It would seem that our world has been stretched to its breaking point by the corona virus. People have placed hateful signs in their yards and on their businesses. In my opinion, that is not the way to solve a problem. I probably will remember some of those businesses in the future. Then a black man was apparently killed by a policeman-the very person who is supposed to protect him. This is a terrible situation and never should happen, let alone over and over. Protests are happening all over the world as a result of this action. Some protests have protesters and police marching in solidarity as it should be. Others places are not so lucky and burning and luting are rampant. Destroying businesses already hard hit by closures is not going to solve any problems. Burning and luting are never the right things to do no matter how frustrated and angry one is. The news has reported that in many places the destruction is being done by people not from that city but who are brought in to bring more unrest and division to a country already so politically divided. I feel lucky to live in west central Illinois. Many people complain about our state. I am sorry if you are not happy but complaining, showing hatred, being unkind to others, and destroying property is not the way to solve any problem.
On Friday, Illinois allowed many businesses to reopen with some rules. Churches were also allowed to reopen. The Living Faith Church Council met on Tuesday evening. Though our building has been closed, the church has not. We continue to have Sunday services, they are just on You Tube. We continue to serve the community. The food pantry has expanded during this time of covid. We still check on each other and pray for those that we know who are in need of special prayer. We decided to continue on as we are-not meeting in the building. Many of our church family are in the high risk group.
Plymouth Rock reopened on Friday. We were not over run! Masks will be required as well as social distancing. I hope that the other businesses which are not following safety guidelines are not putting their customers needlessly at risk.
It appears that the Golden Corral in Quincy has closed as their sign says “Thank You Quincy”. I just purchased $50 in gift certificates. Hannibal no longer has a Golden Corral either. Going to be a long trip to use those coupons!
I have humming birds. There were actually two peacefully enjoying the feeder at the same time. My ponds also have gold fish. I went to Pets Plus in Macomb and purchased 15 gold fish, five for each pond. There were four large green head frogs in the ponds last evening so I may have just provided a nice lunch for them. Hope they can coexist peacefully-we will see. So many beautiful birds in the yard. I have young blue jays and robins which have hatched. The virus has allowed some of us to take some extra time to enjoy nature.
Still trying to be creative with cooking. Am not used to eating every meal at home. This week I purchased Naan flatbread to use for pizza crust. Added pesto, salad dressing instead of a tomato sauce, ham, tomatoes and mozzarella cheese and baked them at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes. They were unbelievably good. You can try your favorite sauce and ingredients but the flat bead pizza is quick and easy and a real treat if you love pizza.
The week ahead looks to be hot. That will be three hits in one week-covid, political unrest and hot temperatures. Try not to add to the problem. Be kind to all those around you. Rein in your frustrations. We are all in this together and we can get through this together much better if we work for the good of all. Scatter Kindness.