I've Been Thinking of You

 I'm gonna say this right off the bat, I really miss y'all! My friends, social media associates, church members, choir members, musician friends, family and everyone else...I miss y'all! I miss being able to go where we would normally see each other and shoot the breeze, handle business, buy groceries, eat together after randomly seeing each other or promising to do better calling or coming by to see each other in passing...yep, I miss the 'convention talk', too! 

I miss seeing you on social media. I miss watching shows together and establishing a comment thread on our timelines that would take the whole week to read. The kids are getting bigger, but they're bored. School isn't what it was last year this time. We're not looking forward to back to school sales, what would they matter, anyway? By the time kids return to school, they'll be in different pant, shirt and shoe sizes. No need to spend the money now. 

I miss that. I miss the awkward glances from the organ at church when something funny happens because I have a view on one else has. I miss my schedule! Wednesday was hump day for real and by 10 PM on Wednesdays, I already had Friday in my view. I miss that, now I don't know what day it is. Who cares what time it is, There's really nowhere to go and I'm all Zoomed and Facebook LIVE'd out! I'm tired, too. 

I stopped fighting sleep but it's not normal sleep. It's sleeping in that's winning. I love naps and I cannot lie. Long naps, power naps...I love 'em! A good day may hold more than one of each in store! That's where we are, as we enter month five of the Coronavirus pandemic. Yep...almost where we started. Right at the beginning with this administration fumbling through the dissemination of public health information, save the death toll of 150,000. 

Lord Jesus, can we please get a cheat code or something? Because I know this country MUST learn or achieve something before all this is over, I'm not as impatient as it may seem. I know that God didn't cause this plague, but He certainly allowed it. Because He allowed it, we have to do our parts to not only survive in it but learn the lessons of it. In fact for many of us, this is our greatest chance to learn life and spiritual lessons for real, this time! This is our chance to end generational curses and struggles and burst through the doors of destiny that await us. 

This is a chance to reset our minds because by the end of the first quarter of 2020, many of us had already fallen away from the resolutions and goals we set for the year. This is our chance, to save some money for a change. If you're like me, a gas fill-up lasts nearly a month. Because, there's only so much gas you can burn driving to the grocery store and your favorite restaurant. Oh, you've gone to the mall, too? How was that? It's a good thing I grew up when the Tandy Center was still a thing here in Fort Worth. The normally bustling Hulen Mall eerily resembled the Tandy Center in the late 90's. Stores are open, but they're not full and there aren't many people in the mall. I don't have to be a financial analyst to be able to tell that profits are down at these stores and in the mall. Many stores have simply chosen not to reopen and those employees are now without a job and have been since before the economy opened up. 

It's a sobering reminder that what you have is not guaranteed. The embargo on evictions has also lifted and many Americans will be forced to move from their homes because of their inability to pay rent. Worse yet, there may not even be anywhere for them to go once they're displaced. It's a lot to take in, but that's where we are in America. The land of the free and home of the brave lies in desolation. Sure there's hope but optimism must first pass through the gate of realism. We can't hope for something that doesn't match the reality of what we currently see. What I mean is, we can't simply ignore the situation and wish for better days. Our wish for better days has to consider that our "better" days will too have been battered by the pandemic of 2020. 

Every major industry has been affected. Sports is making a return, but Coronavirus infections are already derailing a young Major League Baseball season. The Washington Nationals have decided against traveling to compete in a weekend series against the Miami Marlins (at least 17 players and coaches have tested positive for the Coronavirus). NFL and NCAA players are already opting out of the forthcoming season and the NBA season that re-started in "the bubble" is now on the bubble as players adjust to travel stipulations and face the threat of the spread of Coronavirus.

I miss what became known as normalcy. I really do...I miss it so much that some days, I'm off. There's no work done, not even a sentence written and I'm just unable to can. Of all the things I miss, it's probably regular human interaction. I communicate through music and there are many songs that come to my mind over the course of the day but recently I've found myself singing "I'll Be Thinking of You" by the late Pastor Andrae Crouch. The song sums it all up for me...

Verse 1
I'll be thinking of you
Thinking of you
Though we're far apart
You're in my heart
And there you'll always stay 
Till we meet again someday
I'll be thinking of you...

Verse 2
I'll be prayin' for you, yes
I'll be prayin' for you
Prayin' all your hopes and dreams
That they will come true
And if there should be some rain
I know the sun will shine again
Cause I'll be prayin' for you​

We've been forced into a new normal that not many of us really like. Don't get me wrong, some people are making great gains and strides but not everyone. With that in mind, I wanted to pen this note to let you know that i'm not only thinking of you, I'm praying for you! That may explain why I'm on Facebook and Instagram so much...I want to make sure my people are doing well. At one time, there were five people I know personally who contracted the Coronavirus, since then I've stopped counting. I don't even have time to mention those who've lost loved ones to the virus. Funerals just arent Not everyone reports that they've contracted the virus but many are sharing their testimonies of surviving some of their darkest days while the virus ravaged their body. I'm praying for you and if you have a minute, pray for me. 

i still believe that we will make it through this pandemic, together. Whether the only contact we have in the interim is phone and computer screens and phone calls. Let's hold on to each other. In April, I began writing a book entitled, This Crisis Is Not Cause for Alarm which releases on Tuesday, August 4th. I would love for you to consider buying it and adding it to your personal library. If you like it, share it with someone else. I believe the message is pertinent for believers and hope to encourage readers with it. 

So yeah friends and family, I can't get you out o' my mind, I keep thinkin' of you all the of the time...I'm thinking of you!