Shout Out

We went to the grocery store this morning, not to stockpile, but to pick up a few things that we can only get at that particular store, as well as the olive oil and porridge oats I could not get last week at a different store when the shelves were bare.

The shelves were pretty bare in Supervalu, too, which I suspect was a combination of the pandemic and the fact that it was Monday morning. I did get the olive oil and porridge oats, though, and everything else on my list except for white vinegar. There were signs all around the store saying there is a limit of 4 items per customer.

As we were paying, I commented to the woman at the till that things must be pretty crazy for the store employees at the moment. She said they are. I said,'You guys are the unsung heroes of the crisis, working hard to keep the shelves stocked and to make sure that people can get what they need all the while dealing with fearful people.' She said, 'We have no choice, so we just keep at it.' She seemed pleased to have been acknowledged.

As we were walking home, I was thinking about how so many people are showing up at their jobs and trying to keep things running smoothly in these uncertain times. Health care workers are on the front lines, of course. But there are so many others that might not immediately come to mind, like the people working so hard in the grocery store. I was also thinking of the public transport workers who continue to drive the buses so people can get to the grocery store or medical appointments. As we use rural public transport, we see how many people flag down the bus in the middle of nowhere so they can ride to the nearest grocery store or who, like Bill has done, take the bus to a medical or dental appointment. PJ, the guy who drives the bus we most often take, and his colleagues from other companies on other routes make this possible.

So here's a shout out to all those people who are doing their best, under really stressful circumstances, to keep services that people rely on running smoothly. Keeping in mind that, in order to limit their potential exposure as much as possible, these people rely on all of us to follow the advice given by the medical experts, I used the hand sanitiser as requested on the dispenser by the door before entering the building and again on the way out. After putting the groceries away, I washed my hands well--again. We're avoiding public spaces as much as possible, the grocery store being the exception, but that's done for now.

We're all in this together!

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