In this roller coaster year the month ending on May 31, 2020 is no exception. Near 100 degree temperatures today are a reflection of the violence and debate rippling through the United States of America and spilling into other locales. Many compare this month to the late 1960s. Even that comparison fails to achieve unity with camps divided on which moment in time is awarded top spot. A misnomer, since I think both belong in the pits.
Civil Unrest
In actuality, the violence marking the end of May 2020 has been festering under the surface for a while. There are protests throughout the world today. While a few are in support of the racial injustice in America, the Hong Kong protests have a spark of their own. The most recent spawn from an announcement May 21 of a planned new national security law. Click here to read more.
Both the Hong Kong and the U.S. of A. protests come on the heels of an extended lock down due to Covid-19. Additionally, skyrocketing layoffs and terminations from permanent business closures add to the angst. Thus the pandemic coupled with economic threats created a tinder box waiting to ignite.
The above May 21 announcement was the catalyst overseas. But the incendiary in America was yet another death of an African American at the hands of a white cop. Unfortunately, this is nothing new. Many will remember Colin Kaepernick gained infamy and lost a starting job as a NFL quarterback trying to address this decades, nay centuries, old problem of racism and bigotry.
I have no answers to why peaceful protests in America turned so ugly. Part of me wants to say it is an attempt to divide and conquer much like many Helen MacInnes plots. Part of me wants to blame the idle restlessness caused by the isolationism of the pandemic. I fear a breakdown of society is untenable.
May 2020 Closer to Home
Since I live in a very rural setting, the riots both in this country and abroad seem remote. Other than concern for family members living in major cities across the country, life continues as normal. Quite the juxtaposition.
My May 2020 was spent primarily in the garden and in the quilt room. The triple digit heat will force the lettuces into bolting but will be welcomed by the plants that prefer warm days and nights. And the hot afternoons were spent in the cool of the basement designing baby quilts left and right.
People, Place, Time, and Space
I was blessed with another great nephew this last week of May 2020 and was thrilled to don mask and gloves for a peek at him that could be measured in seconds. A Web M.D. doctor was interviewed on television and threw out the four guidelines above (although not in the nice rhyming order.)
People refers to limiting the size of the group you are in.
Place is location. Outside is better than inside.
Time needs to be minimized. Don’t give Covid-19 the time to transfer.
Space is distance from one another. The U.S guidelines are six feet.
So an example of a relatively safe gathering would be less than ten people outdoors for thirty minutes sitting at least six feet apart. A quick visit, perhaps enough time to eat. But certainly not foolproof.
Goodbye and Good Riddance to May 2020
If one lives long enough, one experiences difficult periods in life. As I touched upon in my post, Successes and Failures, early in 2020, work is a good cure. However, many have lost jobs. But one can still stay productive. Volunteer or create. Either is better than the actions of mob mentality. Certainly for me these last days of May 2020, staying productive eased the pain of societal disintegration.
I hope calmer heads prevail in the coming months. This does not mean I think the problems need to be swept under the rug. Freedoms are being usurped across the globe. The sins of our forefathers continue to regenerate here in America. The issues need to be addressed. The violence is but a symptom. The underlying cancer goes deep. Societal change will be difficult and fraught with danger.
2020 is indeed a pivotal year.