Until further notice, hockey has been cancelled. And basketball. And probably other stuff, but I’m trying not to listen/look at the news anymore than is reasonable. And with those beeping devices at our fingertips 24/7, that is not easy. It’s all so, well…disappointing. And sobering.

And let’s face it: things change mighty fast. Two months ago, we heard about an escalating health crisis in Asia, two weeks ago Italy – Italy! – got shut down, two days ago we were joking in my exercise class about all the panick-ers emptying the store shelves of toilet paper. And two hours ago, I began to take stock of my pantry shelves – including toilet paper. And thinking maybe we should stop recycling our newspapers for awhile. Just, you know, in case.

And then this morning I heard that Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson have become Hollywood’s first couple of COVID-19. How very Forrest Gump of him, getting in on it. Don’t get me wrong, I love Tom. And I love his Twitter-ing reassurance that protocol is being followed and all will be well.

Although we haven’t come in contact personally with anyone who has contracted the coronavirus, it’s starting to get closer to home, both geographically and other ways, too. Rick and I had a trip planned for early April. Cancelled. The conference I was going to go to? Cancelled. Hockey game tomorrow night? Cancelled.

Sooooo, none of those things are life-changing for us. But when everything starts to get cancelled, it starts to look grim. Just think about all the other people affected by those cancellations: not just hockey players and other professional athletes, but everybody who works for those organizations. Everyone who works in hotels and restaurants. And then there are the schools facing closures. Hospitals responding to this pandemic.

It’s pretty obvious that there’s soon not going to be any six degrees of separation.

Maybe if we just knew how long it was all going to last, it would be easier to take. Oh, but, yeah...nobody knows that. That’s why everyone is trying to corner the toilet paper market. And, full disclosure: I bought some yesterday. Just, you know, in case.

But if we really think about it, we don’t EVER really know what is going to happen or how long something is going to last. Our family has had our lives turn on a dime many times with events that were life-changing for us, times when you drop everything to attend to what really matters.

When my conference got cancelled a couple a days ago, I had a moment of despair: what if we never get to travel again? Chalk it up to a healthy imagination and a recent reading of Emily St. John Mandel’s pandemic-themed book Station Eleven. (Trust me: this is not a good time to take note of one of my book recommendations.) If we couldn’t travel again, if we had to rearrange our lives, if we had to bunker down – we would survive. Well, hopefully, since most people who contract the virus recover just fine, if it just takes a little time.

And outside my window today, the sun is shining. It will probably come up again tomorrow. The couple who bought our last house had a baby yesterday and I was sent the news on my iPhone this morning, complete with a picture of the miracle. Another friend sent a message that her dad who is on life support, has taken a turn for the better. And my kids are sending Homer Simpson gifs to our family conversation because a sense of humor really helps. And because: Homer Simpson.

So, my phone can be the bearer of good news as well as bad. Life is not all disappointing and sobering. And let’s hope that if it really does get crazy, we can all spare a square if someone needs it.