It looks like a typical late summer Pacific Northwest Sunday morning. The colors are beginning to change and Autumn is only two days away. The fog shrouds the trees as the sun has yet to warm the earth and air. Water from yesterday’s rain is in puddles on the ground. Not more than a week ago we were dealing with debilitating smoke and extremely hazardous air quality.

After nine days of unhealthy and hazardous air it is a relief to be able to go outside without the worry of breathing and becoming sick. It is invigorating to breathe in deeply. What a joy to see God’s colors, as He designed them, no longer shrouded behind a yellowish brown haze. The shades of green in the trees and grasses, the fading and turning colors of the leaves and various hues of the water.

It is fairly quiet in the early morning out among nature not too far away from home. The only sounds beside the birds in the trees and on the water are those of other people enjoying a walk along a path. It almost feels normal out here. Cool temperatures, colors, animal life and people enjoying themselves. But life continues to be anything but normal.

Our society is dealing with the COVID-19 virus pandemic. There is fear and concern about catching this virus that has sickened millions and has been reportedly linked to hundreds of thousands of deaths. Governing authorities require physical distancing and the wearing of face coverings just to leave your home and be among other people. Businesses are closed or operating at extremely reduced capacity. If I go just down the road, back into town, suddenly I will feel as though I am separated from the world around me by the appearance of other people a distance away and “masked,” hiding their expressions and feelings. If a business is open I may not be able to patronize it if too many are already within its walls. Livelihoods are being impacted as many resort to “ordering on line” and receiving what they can purchase outside their front door without leaving their home.

Oh for a return to normalcy. I wait for an opportunity to enjoy waking among people without facial barriers. To be able to smile and be seen smiling as I receive a smile in return. To be close enough to others to whisper and be heard. Or to meet at an eatery for fellowship and to enjoy each other’s company over food and drink. And of course, to be able to enter a business that is open and thriving without being directed which aisle I must walk down or being turned away because the building’s government imposed capacity has been reached.