One of the most disheartening aspects of this, our day 30 of self-quarantine, is that it occurs in the midst of our most storied traditions. Just as we adjust begrudgingly to having our day to day routines being shattered, now it disturbs our very serious holiday routine. On this weekend where the Christians celebrate Good Friday, have sunrise services and gather all around the world for Holy Easter Sunday; where the Jewish community celebrates Passover; and soon the Muslim community celebrates the beginning of Ramadan, the virus has messed with all of these religious activities allowing no recourse to congregate.  Moreover, this horrible calamity upon us has now messed with the greatest of those traditions – the Easter Bunny baskets of candy!

For as long as I can remember, I have provided Easter baskets to our daughters.  No matter how old they have grown, no matter where they move, no matter where we may be – they get an Easter basket full of candy on Easter weekend.  NOT the grandkids – No – that is the job of the real Easter bunny.  My job is for our daughters and their husbands. Over the years I have had to adjust the baskets to meet their changing tastes. One likes milk chocolate bunnies, one wants white chocolate bunnies (that’s a marketing bonanza), one wants dark chocolate, one likes peeps, one hates peeps, one likes standard jelly beans, one likes speckled jelly beans, one likes Reese’s while another one prefers Snickers etc. etc.  You get my point – it is time consuming, exhausting, tedious, frustrating – but truly one of the absolutely most fun times of the year for me. I always look forward to being the Bunny once again. Finding the right sized “mailable” basket or box or Tupperware container. Then packaging them up and going to UPS or post office to special mail the “baskets” on time. It was the best experience for me – until this year. The virus took all that away from me – no shopping at a dozen stores to get the right goods, no going to find the right box, and no going to UPS to ship it properly. I am crushed. I always enjoyed the weeks of eating the “leftover” candies that wouldn’t fit in the baskets. After years and years, the cycle has finally been broken! The coronavirus has killed the Easter Bunny!

Day 30 brings on all the same reminders as day 1 – wash your hands, keep 6 feet apart and don’t touch your face! Lifesaving advice. By now Peg wishes they would advise 6 miles apart. It is a little tough being stuck with me every day.  Do they not know how hard it is for me to NOT touch my face? I wear large loose glasses that slide down my nose, I have a beard, I have seasonal allergies – I am the poster boy for face touching! Just take me out back and shoot me now. “No Peg – it was just rhetorical”.

No face touching – no Easter candy – I can’t take it anymore -but the most devastating consequence of this quarantine is that we haven’t been able to babysit the grandkids since last year! Surely there is no god!