Pandemic Reflections from a Grandparent: Fall 2021

The summer that was supposed to be different, but wasn’t, has passed. While the days are still warm, darkness descends earlier and nights are colder. And life, at least for me, is still far from normal. As I dread a return to more Zoom when it becomes too cold to visit outdoors, I am beginning to see how the changes brought about by the pandemic may be with me even after this thing is over.

I have lost almost two years in the lives of my grandkids who live out of town. There are have no music performances, soccer games, swim or cross country meets, skating shows, or any other special events in their lives to attend. COVID swallowed up many of these, and our inability to get there safely has wiped out the rest, as well as birthday and holiday celebrations. All of this makes me profoundly sad. The older grandchildren have outgrown those golden years of hanging out with their grandparents — there is a huge developmental difference between 10 and 12 or even 13 and 15. Now they are vaccinated, but we worry about our safety driving to Indiana and finding a hotel that requires masks and vaccinations. Based on our last visit at the end of May, I doubt such a thing exists there.

Our younger grandkids are unvaccinated but attending school (masked) and activities (unmasked in Indiana). Two years ago, my grandson in Indiana loved to have me…