We Deserve This Great Weather

With Massachusetts entering the reopening phase after 14 months of lockdowns, the arrival of the magnificent weather this week could not have been better-timed.

All of us have had to make sacrifices to varying degrees during the pandemic.

Many of our fellow citizens have suffered greatly, whether from the deaths of loved ones, the loss of livelihoods, or the lingering effects of long-COVID.

However, what has become clear throughout the pandemic is the power of the resiliency of the human spirit. This was evident as we were walking along a crowded Newbury St. in downtown Boston this past Saturday afternoon under sunny skies with temperatures near 80. Sidewalk restaurants were bustling, shops had customers, and people were just happy to be out-and-about.

We were reminded of the words of our mother after she’d been diagnosed with the breast cancer that eventually would overwhelm her: “Life is for the living,” she would say.

The pandemic has served to remind us that our existence is both short and fragile. Hopefully, with the realization that our grasp on this earth at best is tenuous, we will have a greater appreciation of the simple things — a sun-filled sky on a warm afternoon — and endeavor to make the most of every day as we strive to make the world a better place not only for ourselves, but for those around us.