My head and my heart need a distraction from the turmoil and unrest that overwhelms us as a country at the moment. Sadness needs to be measured or we run a risk of being consumed by it. So here is my diversion:
Drive throughs and take aways.
Do these things remind you of your childhood? Who remembers the The Doll House? For out-of-towners, and anyone who is younger than.....shall we say middle aged....., this was a drive in restaurant in Sea Point. We would pile into the family car (there were 6 of us) and pull up in a parking slot and wait for the uniformed waiter to take our order. It was health food all the way: Hot dogs, slap chips and milkshakes. And now for the exciting part: the goodies were placed on a tray which could be held on a partially open car window. There was a special skill involved in getting the food before the Sea Gulls did. They were particularly fond of the chips. So my memories include the cry of the birds, my Mom's exclamations about their cheekiness, the background murmur of the sea, and good family times.
To close the loop of past and present, I am hoping to be invited to tea there towards the end of the year (hint hint, B!) as my good friend has just had her offer accepted, and she will be moving in to her new home built on the Doll House site.
By the time our kids were around, Drive ins were not really in vogue. We did take the children once or twice, and that was enough! And then the concept disappeared for a while, or least was not something we pursued. And drive through restaurants became common and Nothing Special, even bribing the kids with toys because Happy meals need plastic figurines to make them palatable.
I experienced a new type of Drive Through last week: we rolled up, parked in the spot indicated, a uniformed person asked what we needed, and then she shoved a long cotton swab up my left nostril. Covid testing has to be my least favourite of the drive through options available, although I am grateful at how quick and easy it was. It brought tears to my eyes as the swab went through passages I didn't know existed. Negative result. I was very relieved.
It feels like Everyone is dealing with a lot at the moment. So I need to look for the kindnesses people show each other. Every smile, every comment of concern, all acts of humanity -small gestures, big efforts-, build the bigger jigsaw picture that will get us through these overwhelming times.
Bite sized kindness can change the world. That is my take away.
