Close-up of elderly woman holding hands with another person.
Image by Siggy Nowak from Pixabay

Member-only story

Touch

An elderly neighbor’s loneliness broke our social distancing efforts.

Edie Meade
a Few Words
Published in
3 min readJun 5, 2020

--

In some ways, my world was a small one even before Covid-19 forced social distancing measures on us. Now as the economy “re-opens,” I see the fingers of the pandemic reaching into my family’s space. It comes in the form of longing for social interaction.

My days are typically spent in the perimeters of my home, yard, and the blocks of my neighborhood. This is a routine predating coronavirus: for the past couple of years, I’ve been working remotely as a freelancer and raising a family. In April, I gave birth.

In the evenings, my husband and I typically go out for a walk down to the neighborhood school where our toddler can run freely in the large, deserted yard. We bounce balls, fly kites, and play in the open air. Our new baby, now six weeks old, enjoys the stroller rides. He blinks and sighs at the breeze and birdsong.

For several weeks, the sidewalks and yards have been quiet. Our neighbors would wave from their porches. Occasionally we saw friends shouting to one another from their cars. At graduation time, families made large yard signs congratulating their seniors.

The past week has seen a change. Social distancing has been swept away. At the school one evening, we encountered a boisterous group of boys playing…

--

--

Edie Meade
Edie Meade

Written by Edie Meade

A compassionate and opinionated human being. | Fiction author and visual artist in Central Appalachia. | Give my newsletter a try: https://bit.ly/2sZGM6n

Responses (2)