In the summer we prefer to walk in the evening, after supper. For the most part we have always lived in places where it cools off overnight. Here the temperature can drop ten or fifteen degrees below the daytime high by 7pm. Most evenings it is very comfortable for a vigorous walk by that time. We aren’t the only ones. As we walk, we see lots of others who are out enjoying the walkways and the cooling of the evening. Last night we walked on an urban trail that passes near to our house. Heading east from our place the trail leads past a middle school and goes on to a large park. Before last night, we hadn’t walked that portion of the trail for more than a month as we have been traveling and since our return we have walked on different trails. We noticed quite a few changes. The blackberries are ripe. You can pick and eat as many as you’d like as you walk along. Picking berries, however, slows the pace of our walking and since we are out for the exercise, other than an occasional berry for a quick snack, we don’t pick berries. We do notice, however, how the greenery alongside the trail is lush and thick despite weather that is much drier than normal.

It is common here for people to not water their lawns. When dry spells come they allow the grass to go dormant for a while until the rain returns. The parks and school yards, however, are irrigated and the grass is green.

When we last walked the trail, in late June, the baseball fields at the park were filled with players of different ages, enjoying the open space and the joy of the game. Last night all of the ball fields were silent and empty. In contrast, the soccer and football fields at the middle school, which have been empty since we began walking on the trails, were filled with people. There was at least one organized soccer practice and one football scrimmage going on as we walked past. Then, after we reached the end of the trail and turned around, we were struck by the empty fields once again. The practices had gotten over and everyone had headed for home. It wasn’t late, but there were no children lingering kicking a ball around.

Maybe everyone headed home to watch the Olympics.

Maybe people are still nervous about the pandemic. While there is a great urge to get out and to resume some kind of normalcy, there is also a hesitancy. Participating in an organized practice, with all of the protocols in place is acceptable, but once it is over, there is a return to the isolation that has marked the pandemic. I really don’t know what is going on. It seems, however, a bit sad to see so many beautiful sports fields empty and unused on a warm summer evening.

We wonder how much things have changed in ways that are permanent. Some of the changes that have occurred during the pandemic are such that whatever comes next won’t be a return to what was before.

The timing of our retirement and other factors have meant that we have done quite a bit of traveling during the pandemic. We moved ourselves, which meant several trips between South Dakota and Washington last summer and fall. Then, this spring, fully vaccinated and eager to see our daughter and her family, we made a giant road trip from Washington to South Carolina and back. Along the way we paused for a family gathering in Montana and to renew friendships in South Dakota. Having a camper, we didn’t stay ini motels on our trip, but we did eat in restaurants a few times and there were trips to grocery stores and other occasions where we were indoors with strangers. It isn’t that we fear becoming infected ourselves. That risk is greatly reduced by the vaccinations and chances are quite good that even if we are infected the vaccine will mean that we won’t experience severe symptoms. What we fear is unknowingly transmitting the virus to other people.

This evening a niece and her family will arrive at our son’s home. Her three children and our son’s three will play together. Our families have been healthy and the adults are vaccinated, but all of the children are too young to receive the vaccine. After careful consideration, we have determined that the risk is acceptable and that it is important for children to get to know cousins. After more than a year of isolation, we are eager to be together. Tomorrow, more of our family will gather. Over the weekend we have several meals planned for 17. Such gatherings used to be the norm in our family. We like to get together. In the past, such meals often included friends and even larger numbers. It doesn’t feel like we are taking unacceptable risks. We have been careful to follow the advice about distances. We will be gathering at the farm, where there is plenty of outdoor space and most of our meals will be eaten outdoors around picnic tables.

It isn’t possible, however, to gather without any risk. Being aware of the risk and managing it to the best of our ability seems to us to make the risk acceptable.

As families struggle with decisions and try to make wise choices, the challenges for institutions is different. We have a meeting at our church next week during which we will discuss how we will proceed with educational events for children as the pandemic lingers. We know the value of community and we know how important it is for people to share faith. But we also want to do what we are able to keep people safe from infection. The times will continue to be challenging for churches and schools as we head into the fall. We know that contact will increase, but we want to be responsible in our choices.

For now, we are paying attention as we walk around our community. Hopefully we can learn from the experiences of the past year and a half and continue to make choices that will bring forth futures for our community.