Here With Me

I’m not sure how many of you are kind of tired of having your family there with you every single day.  Day in, day out, stuck at home.  Personally, I have only had to do it for two and a half weeks so I’m still OK with having them here with me.  My husband, on the other hand, is ready to give me to the gypsies as soon as they roll back into town.  Not even sell, but GIVE me to them, LOL. There are a lot of people who are not as lucky as I am.  I have a lot of friends who are stuck alone in their apartments day in and day out with no one to talk to.  They have CNAs and sometimes a few other people come to their doors, but the staff they encounter only stay for a minute or two.  No lie, it is literally ONE minute or maybe TWO, unless they need assistance with ADLs (or Activities of Daily Living), such as showering or toileting.  It broke my hear to leave them behind when I left work to care for my family and myself.  You see, I am one of the at risk people and my son was terrified every time I went to work.  Not to mention, the masks that I eventually had to wear when I was out of my private office became an asthma trigger.  Then Spring hit, well as springy as Illinois gets.  Now I am stuck indoors because everything that flies around in the nice Spring breeze is an asthma trigger.  After almost 10 years of dealing with this you would think I would be used to it.  NOT!  I love the outdoors.  I love to go on walks, hikes, ride my bike, go camping, have bonfires with the neighbors, go to the beach, or whatever it is you do outside.Anyway, back to the real reason for this blog….During my isolation from the world I have been making cards to send “Smiles” and “Hugs” through the mail to my family and friends, some of  who are self isolating in their tiny apartments.  Every week I try to mail out at least 5 handmade cards.  I originally tried my hand at sewing masks, but failed beyond belief, so I went back to what I know I am good at!  This week I have made these simple cards.

I have found, that no matter how you think your cards come out, the receiver will love the thought and time you took to make them feel special and loved.  Happy mail is some of the best kind of mail.  Do you remember a time when we regularly sent out birthday, anniversary, and other types of special occasion cards?  It was common practice and I remember getting several birthday cards for my birthdays in the mailbox.  Now it seems that fewer of those come through the post.  I typically only receive cards during a celebration.  These last few years I have wanted “experiences” for my birthday instead of parties.  With that, I have gotten almost no cards, with the exception of my mother.  Without fail she had taken the time to read about 50 cards at the Hallmark store to pick out the perfect one for that year.During COVID-19, we need happy mail more than ever!  If you are in need of happy mail, please send me a private message.  I will make sure that you receive a “Smile” to brighten your day.  This world needs a lot more smiles and I am here to help make that happen!