Unbelievably, quite by accident, a book that I placed on hold and had no idea of its theme, just knew I enjoyed the author, came on-line to me during this siege and it is a novel about the 1917 pandemic. Bright as Heaven is set in Philadelphia where the family shares an apartment with their undertaker uncle. Talk about a front and center seat!
There is a curious kind of comfort knowing the world has gone through this before and survived - with no internet and telecommunications blaring out the detailed nuances on a minute by minute basis. Everyone in Philadelphia had flocked to a patriotic parade and of course compounded the contamination exponentially. 1917. 2020. Same type of event, same results. Comfort in knowing they survived; despair over lessons unlearned.
This bright as heaven day beckons and I will go swim a few laps in the sunshine. But I will return to my 1917 Philadelphia sisters and brothers eagerly to find out how they are weathering their storm.
And look again to ours.
No comments:
Post a Comment