The first weekend of May has arrived blessing us with lovely weather and bringing with it hope for better times. Hope for a more “normal” existence, hope that the coronavirus will abate and let us live again. The beautiful weather brought the people outside, to the beaches, the parks, around the neighborhoods or anywhere besides their home where they could be out yet still feel safe.
Noontime Saturday May 8, 2020 Jones Beach field 6 closed at about 50% capacity. Town of Babylon Cedar Beach had about 20 cars in the parking lot. A family was set up in the sand with chairs, blankets, food and fun games for the kids, others were close to shore safely apart. Tobay Beach open to Town of Oyster Bay residents only had around 50 cars in their parking lot along with a food truck selling goodies! The bike path that runs besides Wantagh and Ocean parkways had people walking, biking and skating, enough space for everyone, some masked, some not but all looking happy to be out and about.
Sunday at Eisenhower Park, East Meadow, all parking fields were utilized. People were out doing the same, families were biking, picnicking, playing various games and some sporting activities. There was even a larger family group, all were masked and spread apart having fun celebrating someone’s birthday. Many older couples, masked, enjoyed a peaceful walk through the park.
Wow Lowe’s home improvement store in Hicksville was super busy! Customers were purchasing their spring and summer needs, including lawn and yard care, gardening, flowers, plants, vegetables, Barbeques, pavers etc. preparing for summer. The cool thing was Lowe’s abided by the rules, masked employees maintained social distancing on lines both in and out of the store. At one point the line in the parking lot had about 50 customers on it, all wore their masks and were keeping apart from one another. Timing of when to enter was controlled by employees who kept track of the occupancy.
If you took a walk around your neighborhood you could smell the wood burning in fire pits, the aroma of yummy burgers and steaks cooking on the barbeque, you could actually hear sounds of fun, of laughter, of life. There wasn’t that eerie quietness of the past several weeks. The world is eager to awake and smell the roses, but do so in a safe manner. Regardless of the conflicting information concerning COVID-19, the reality is the coronavirus is highly contagious. It can be deadly to those with underlying health issues and to those age 70 and above, of course there are always exceptions to the rules. The scary part, of those who tested positive about half were asymptomatic. This is a new learning experience for all of us and yes, we want to move forward, but we must not let foolishness and selfishness override our own health or the safety of those near and dear to us. The world is hopeful, ready to awaken, to seize the day, but we must do so in a manner which is suitable for the well being and protection of us all.
