In Houston, I expect we’ll begin the next step up in Covid-19 this morning, or one morning soon. Not just closed businesses and staying at home, but what sounds initially a lot like like confinement. Once I read the rules that will be enforced, though, it’s not so different than what we’ve been doing.

Except of course, the rules appear to close my cigar shop, which bothers me. Not so much because I’ve continued to lounge there — I haven’t — but because it’s really going to sock it to the owner’s business finances. I don’t like that. And, too, I can’t buy any more cigars after my extremely limited stash is burned — not that that is important either. With the numbers the way they are — and I’ve been crunching them since I became aware of this virus in January — my discomfort and petty inconveniences are unimportant.

Start a Journal

Perhaps you might consider beginning a journal today. There may be a moment you might want to remember. Coming through a time of crisis. Helping those around you. Facing your fears. A journal to check into as the crisis unfolds so you can remember where you were and how you were doing.

You could rise a little earlier to write in it. You could list what was happening around you, what you intended to accomplish that day. It could motivate you not to sit in front of the television all day hearing the same news. (Like I did yesterday, and the day before).

You see? I’ve just listed failures, on my part, for the last two days. I’m not doing that today. My purpose is to write 5,000 words. Today. And tomorrow. And the rest of this week. It’s not like I’ll have much else to do, right? All I need is discipline. And spell check of course. I can’t write my name without spell check. And ‘Alexa’ playing Beethoven. And I’ll need ‘Snowing scenes in Kyoto’ on the big screen in my study.

I’m not suffering. We’ll be fine. Just a minor inconvenience for (I hope) the benefit of all of us. It sounds corny, but moments like this are what that phrase was meant for. Not the trite over-use of it to urge people to do something trivial in politics or elsewhere, but for moments like this.