DAY 29

Here we are into week five. Unbelievable. Our governor has extended the stay at home order until the end of April. Three more weeks, and I don't have a bit of confidence that it will end there. The number of cases in our county passed two hundred today. The death count is at three, one of them being a man who was my science teacher in Junior High. He died yesterday. I knew that he was in the hospital with the virus. Each day that went by with no report of his death gave me hope that he would survive it. My heart aches for his family, and for all of the families who have lost a loved one to this invisible killer.

This morning Miss Nine asked me if I wanted to play Counselor with her. She has had an on and off career as a Life Coach over the last couple of years. She is kind of like Lucy Van Pelt in the Peanuts comic strip. The advice she gives can be pretty deep for such a young girl. Well, I played along. She sat on her side of the desk and I sat on the other. In a very professional voice she asked me what my problem was today. I told her that I was stuck in the house and I was running out of ways to entertain myself. She said, "let's talk about the things you like to do and then we will make a list of things to keep you occupied." Interestingly, the list ended up being mostly what she would like to do.

• Read every day for one hour
• Make scrunchies for Miss Nine
• Walk for 20 minutes every other day
• Bike ride for 20 minutes every other day
• Journal in a notebook
• Take a room decor class by Miss Nine
• Play with Miss Nine for 45 minutes every day
• Teach Miss Nine in person
• Play games with Miss Nine and Papa

I think she was really counseling herself, which is something that we all can do if we look inward in an honest way. We played Barbies for 45 minutes after our counseling session.

We have the best neighbors on the planet, I swear. We keep each other cheered up in so many ways. Today two women across the street asked if they could bring over something for Miss Nine. It was all very secretive. I had to keep her occupied while they dropped off the surprise. She went outside and found a bag hanging on the front door knob. In the bag was a pretty pink purse, some a Lego kit, a bunny, and other assorted things that a little girl would love. The cupcakes, flowers, chalk messages and gifts are helping to make this isolation much more bearable.