Today I woke up early and started writing. Then I started researching for my students who want to write about Coronavirus. I started feeling a tad revved up, so I signed up for some online yoga classes and did a couple of short videos. I felt so much better afterwards.
Then I went to the cherry blossoms. I go every year. I love seeing the fluffy clouds of delicate pink flowering trees gracefully fringing the Tidal Basin. It feels magical.
I guess I have been going since I moved here. Maybe my first time was 1997? Hard to believe that it has been over 20 years. I have strong memories of many of my visits. Usually, I recall the people I go with.
One year I went with my parents and happened upon the kite festival. We watched the sky dotted with various creative shapes, swaying and diving in the wind. Another year, my niece Kay came. I have a framed picture of us posing by a tree in the sunshine. One time my other niece Phoebe came, but it was freezing cold. I dragged her down there determinedly so that we could look at them even though it was frigid. My nephew Josef came during a tour of colleges. That day the weather was unseasonably hot, and I parked really far away and we were sweaty by the time we made it to the trees. One time Scott and I were walking there at night around the whole Tidal Basin, and we got stuck in a downpour. Another time during the day, a big thunderstorm blew in and whipped up waves, and the people on the paddle boats were stranded. I had a salad picnic with Sarah and Rebecca. One year, I took a video of a beaver swimming along.
Every year is slightly different. Today was certainly a new experience.
One year I went with my parents and happened upon the kite festival. We watched the sky dotted with various creative shapes, swaying and diving in the wind. Another year, my niece Kay came. I have a framed picture of us posing by a tree in the sunshine. One time my other niece Phoebe came, but it was freezing cold. I dragged her down there determinedly so that we could look at them even though it was frigid. My nephew Josef came during a tour of colleges. That day the weather was unseasonably hot, and I parked really far away and we were sweaty by the time we made it to the trees. One time Scott and I were walking there at night around the whole Tidal Basin, and we got stuck in a downpour. Another time during the day, a big thunderstorm blew in and whipped up waves, and the people on the paddle boats were stranded. I had a salad picnic with Sarah and Rebecca. One year, I took a video of a beaver swimming along.
Every year is slightly different. Today was certainly a new experience.
Today was the first time I have used my car since last Friday. I drove down to see the cherry blossoms in DC. They are only in bloom for a few days every year. Every year the weather, the experience, the company is different. Today I drove there and saw big digital signs that are usually used to warn about traffic, but they were telling people to OBEY CDC GUIDELINES. STAY SIX FEET AWAY FROM PEOPLE. If I had seen that even a couple of months ago, I would have been confused, but now it seems kind of normal. New normal. I walked on Hains Point along the miles of flowering trees, careful not to come near anyone. There were definitely fewer people there. I put my family on a Zoom call so that they could see the blossoms, too. There were definitely not as many people as usual, but the trees were just as stunning as always, even though the world is upside down.
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