April 20

Today was 420, another day of the week, a day like every other. Monday, I think. It began with a shock. A roof has collapsed at Big White. People are without a home. Fortunately, no one got hurt when the atrium roof at the Snow Ghost Inn dropped four floors in a catastrophic heap. 420 didn’t seem all that important and everything takes a back seat to luck. Lucky the hill was closed and no one was under the roof. Luckily it fell in the middle of the night.
 
I went to the hospital today. When I asked the operations manager whom I was meeting if I needed a mask, he laughed. He told me that I was at the safest place in Kelowna. All the doors were locked except the front doors. At the front doors, security was there to check peoples temperatures. After a brief interview, they determined, that I didn’t have a sniffle or a cough, I haven’t been out of the country, I was safe.
 
We met at the elevators and headed up to the roof. The manager and I chatted about the strange circumstances we are in. We prepared for worst-case scenario right now, prepared for what Italy experienced. An overreaction? Maybe, but much safer than if we had a big outbreak and were not prepared for it. Yes, the hospital is empty, we are ready. We are winning as a friend recently told me. We both absorbed the view and the warm temps and forgot about everything. From the roof, the lake and sun-soaked mountains shone brightly in front of us
 
I hopped back on my motorcycle and cruised home, enjoying the warm breeze and fresh air. Forgetting everything but the roar of 1300 cc’s of power. Unfortunately, I was forgetting the things I was supposed to do. I would remember later; I was supposed to be at a zoom meeting at ten. My feeling of failure and letting people down bubbled to the surface. No good excuse for why I never called in; At the time I just loved my bike ride.
 
I got back to the safety of home and found it hard to focus again. I wondered if I should just get off facebook as it has become a distraction, in good and bad ways. My daughter came slowly down to the real world again. I pleaded with her to join me for a bike ride, a walk, anything… we only have the day and then she goes back to her Mom. I guess when I was fourteen I didn’t want to hang out with my parents so I understand when she ditched me for her friends. It was her last day at my place but also the last day to see her friends. I observed her out the door walking up the street and notice these girls really don’t know how to stay two metres apart. Social distancing takes a conscious effort, something lacking in this generation.
 
The last four weeks of writing my journal has been an enlightening experience. I am learning a lot about myself and about my neighbourhood as well as the natural world around me. I am also learning a lot about my relationship with my daughter. I remember being fourteen and Ronald Reagan was President of the United States and Leonid Breshnev was Premier of the Soviet Union. Our world has greatly changed but in many ways, it is much the same. I lived in the shadow of the cold war. Two superpowers stared each other in the eye and fortunately, the Soviets blinked. The doomsday clock was at two minutes to midnight, now it is at 100 seconds to midnight. The closest it has ever been. With uncertainty in everything, it must be a harder time than ever to be a teen. In order to cope they are too busy staring at their phones. My goal with my daughter is to break through the fear and cell phone addiction. My goal with myself is to do the same thing.
 
I’m not sure how long I will continue with the daily journal, I’ll continue as long as I find something to write about. I hope that when we look back at these entries we will see that the future is worth waiting for. That people are basically good. That living in harmony within ourselves is what is most important.