Hello. Back in the spring, when we changed the name of this newsletter from “At Home” to “At Home & Away,” we did so with the expectation that our plans for the foreseeable future would include ongoing reforms. The ratio of time spent at home to time spent outside was not an exact equation; It will change frequently, subject to countless variables. The ideal scenario, where one stays close to home or wanders as far away from it as one pleases, was and is far away.
In the past few weeks, we’ve been reminded (again!) that progress toward this goal is not linear. There is no straight path from abnormal to normal. It’s crooked, potholed, drawn by the detours, and the road works in front of it.
I keep coming back to the poem I first mentioned here last March, which is David Ferry’s translation of Horace’s poem To Licinius. These lines keep coming back to me – when a long-awaited flight is indefinitely put on hold, when my family decides to postpone the gathering for the holidays – when the well-laid plans are not paid off in an instant:
Always expect setbacks; Be optimistic about problems,
Be anxious when things are going well. that’s how it is
For a man whose heart is ready for anything.
It is true that Jupiter brings harsh winters.
It is also true that Jupiter takes them far.
If things are bad now, they won’t always be.
Apollo does not always draw his arc;
There are times when he picks up the harp and plays,
And awakens the sleeping music on the strings.
Reading this poem is one of the activities that has helped me hold it together lately. I was pleased to hear from readers this week about the things they are doing to remedy it. (Requests have been edited for length and clarity.)
Robin Berman of Briarcliff Manor, New York, wrote, “Instead of turning on the news early in the morning, I listen to music, whether it’s jazz or classical music. As soon as I grab my coffee and do some stretching, the news ignites.”