Corona Quicksand

My experience with Quicksand is zero except for what I’ve seen in old westerns. Watching a victim sink into the miry muck is quite frightening. The danger is not obvious until it suddenly snares the animal or person in a liquefied soil that creates a sucking trap. A nightmare scenario for sure! If the victim flails around—and who wouldn’t—the situation causes the entrapped to sink deeper. Escape only comes when someone comes to the rescue.

The Pandemic we are experiencing could be called Corona Quicksand. It came upon us quite unexpectedly and has sucked us into a spongy situation with few opportunities to escape. The pictures of the virus are enough to instill fear. The round ball with porcupine suckers is a nightmare scenario.

We are stuck in Corona Virus Quicksand and trying desperately to get out. We are told that it is too dangerous for older people to venture out into the world for fear of contracting the virus. My question is:  When will it ever be safe? I decided to test the waters.

Small businesses in Georgia are starting to reopen. Yesterday I got my hair cut and had a long over-due massage. I was quite impressed with the precautions taken at each location. My temperature was scanned. The technician only let me in the building when it was time for my appointment. Everyone wore masks and sanitized workstations between each customer. It was cleaner there than at my own house.

I heard stories from the technicians about how difficult it has been for them to stay home and not get a paycheck for the last month. Most of these folks are independent contractors who have yet to get stimulus checks from the government.

The medical experts and the politicians have tough decisions to make. Whatever they decide will be criticized. If we wait for a vaccine to be available before we get our economy up and running, the sucking sound of a great depression will get louder each month.

Our current situation reminds me of a Bible verse in the book of Psalms. King David is praising God for rescuing him from the pit of sin when he writes:

“He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay, And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm.” Psalms 40:2

Just like escaping quicksand requires a rescuer, we need to pray that God will rescue our nation and our world from this virus and put us back on a firm foundation.

Unique Word-- Cattywampus

Cattywampus

I like words.  As a writer, I try to use simple, ordinary words that everyone can understand.  Sometimes I run across words that are very interesting and fun to use. During the next few blogs I want to share some unique words that may or may not be familiar. Cattywampus describes things that are askew or awry, and can be used for intersections that don’t meet in a straight line. There are a lot of intersections like that in Georgia.  No wonder we have so many streets named “Peachtree.”

Fall Clothes 

Spring has finally arrived in Georgia—warmer temperatures in the 70’s. For weeks, the weather has yo-yoed from warm to freezing making clothing choices a challenge. The weather has been cattywampus and not what we normally expect during April.  Every April and October, I transition my closet to the next season. I am so done with cold weather by April, the dark colored sweaters and corduroy pants beg to be put away for the next six months.  In October, I’m not quite so eager to put up the shorts and sandals.  But as soon as I make the closet transition in spring or fall, the hot or cold weather returns making me dig back through my storage boxes. Someone who knows me well laughs and tells me not to transition my clothes or the weather will rebel once again.

Watching the news is unsettling. Unsettling and cattywampus events dominate the headlines. International turmoil and the threat of war are served up daily.  The political news close to home is even more worrisome. Another election in November will determine the direction of the country for years to come.

Our natural inclination in dealing with turmoil is anxiety, which can be helped by looking at the Scriptures and applying its truth to our lives.  For example, it’s been over two weeks since Easter 2018 when we celebrated the greatest event in Christianity. I often wonder how Jesus’s disciples dealt with their anxiety in the days and weeks following the crucifixion and resurrection. They had responded to the call of Jesus to “follow me” only to discover everything they had signed on for was now cattywampus and upside down. Jesus didn’t overthrow Roman rule and become a Jewish king like David. Instead he instituted the kingdom of God in the hearts and minds of his followers. It would have been much easier for them to make plans for a government takeover than model lives of sacrificial love and forgiveness that Jesus required.  When Jesus appeared to them before ascending into heaven, he told them to wait for further instruction. 

Waiting is very hard for most of us when everything is cattywampus.  We want to fix our problems and change our circumstances. RIGHT NOW.  Waiting for God to work is very difficult if we are action-oriented people. Perhaps that why so many of us are told to wait and watch to see what the Lord is going to do.

Psalm 40:1 “I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.

It will be worth being patient when God acts and our waiting is over.