As grim as things look, there are two messages of hope worth repeating.
- social distancing is not the same as social isolation
- spend more time outside
It’s important to spend time with your family and friends, in small groups, outside. Be in the sunlight. Be active. Do things together. Don’t be alone.
Being outside is good for your health, your immune system, and even more important, it exposes you to UV rays which are the mortal enemy of viruses. Spending time with people you love, is good for your mental health. So long as we do so with an abundance of caution.
With that in mind, I want to make a list of some ways we can maintain distance while staying together. Things we can do outside with those we love.
- walking in the park
- starting a garden
- small group, non-contact sports like tennis or archery
- going to the beach/lake
- go use your outside voice to say hello to your neighbor while standing over 6 ft. apart
- picnic (with each person packing their own lunch – no communal or potluck food)
- teaching kids how to clean, repair, paint, and do other outdoor house maintenance
- prune the fruit trees and build a hugleculture
- how about a keyhole garden?
- for you urbanites, get your name on that list for the allotment community garden you always wanted to grow
- plant a tree
- start some seeds
- take cuttings
- grafting fruit trees
- learn/ teach survival skills. Ohioan Dave Canterbury has YouTtube videos to watch and try outdoors https://m.youtube.com/user/wildernessoutfitters/search?query=camp+cooking.
- learn a new-to-you old-time craft, like tatting, lacenet dar@ning, blacksmithing, basket-weaving
Adapted for an Ohio audience from a post by R. Ranson on Permies.
