THE NEW YORKER

My daughter-in-law’s sweet mama gifted me with a New Yorker subscription.  For a slow reading conservative, it has been an interesting experiment.  Beside the fact that it seems to arrive on my doorstep every other day (rather than every other week) and the articles can be 8-10 pages long with only little tiny drawings to take up space, I’m embracing the challenge. Why, you ask? I’m not sure yet – I’ll let you know.

I started with the cartoons of course, moved to the dramatically short fiction, on to the reviews of the arts and then if I have time, I will try my hardest to tackle the serious stuff.  Strangely though, I’ve started to think in New Yorker style cartoons.  Like I think someone should draw a cartoon with a person (it is a man in my mind for an unknown reason) lying inert on the ground with a blank expression on his face.  Above him, in the air, is just a huge question mark, in bold type. (I found the drawing above by chance and it’s pretty close to my imaginings.It even looks New Yorker-ish, doesn’t it?) I think this is how my family members and I are feeling right now. Total uncertainty.  What does the future – MY future – hold, with this virus looming?

Edward regularly looks at me and asks, “How is this going to work?” He is bereft thinking about what is going to happen to his beloved F & B industry. Those who are working wish they were stuck at home watching NetFlix, while those “sheltering in place” can’t wait to go to the office again. Those who can’t visit loved ones in nursing homes are grieving.  Those actually in the homes are feeling isolated and lonely. Those who’ve been fired and are trying to live unemployment check to unemployment check are barely – if even – getting by. And the homeless and disabled – what can you even say.

Yeah, Jeff Bezos is shedding a fake tear on the way to count his soon-to-be TRILLION dollars. It would take me a minute to figure out how many zeroes that is.

Back to the looming question mark.  We have been taught to make a plan for the future - from as soon as we could talk.  “What are you going to be when you grow up, little girl?”  A doctor?  Put a doctor’s kit on Santa’s list, get As in Biology, go to a college that will prepare you.  Oh, an artist, you say?  Get out the paints and crayolas for this one. You want to make dresses? Fashion design school, here we come. But at the moment, absolutely everything, in most corners of the entire world, is being tossed in the air – and we are all looking up and waiting to see where the pieces fall back down and what new configuration they will take. No one can make a p.l.a.n.  It could be exciting but the unknown is just not.  But rather, it’s scary – not to mention the suffering and death that keeps ticking away on our TV screens. 

The politics are almost a nice distraction.  Let’s face it – there IS no right answer, no good answer, no definite path we should take - individually and as a nation. Is it time to just move on and watch as more people become ill and some die, but at least the economy will limp back – or – is that crazy?  Do we all need to continue to stay home, hide from the virus and hope it will go away?  But then what?  We just expect the government to keep printing money and handing it over so everyone can pay their bills?

All I can say is, it’s a good time to have a strong faith.  I can put all this in God’s hands and count on Him to work it all out.Non-believers may think that’s a cop out but I see it as a comfort. Because hope is what everyone needs right now. Let’s just put one foot in front of another, one day at a time and make some applesauce for a neighbor, give a sandwich to a homeless person and buy some produce from a local farmer.

Hang in there.

HOMEMADE APPLESAUCE

4 medium tart apples, peeled, cored and quartered (I chopped mine into big chunks)

1 cup water

½ cup light brown sugar

¼ tsp. cinnamon

1/8 tsp nutmeg

1 Tbsp butter

¾ cup chopped walnuts (optional) (I used pecans)

½ cup golden raisins (optional)

1/3 cup coconut (optional) – I haven’t tried the coconut yet

Put the apples and water in a pot and heat over medium heat until boiling.  Reduce to simmer and stir occasionally for 10 - 15 minutes until apples are tender.  Add all the other ingredients and heat through until raisins are plumped.  Serve warm with pork or pancakes!