Holy Week

I am not a religious person by any means.  Easter to me means lots of discounted chocolates and Jelly Bellies the Tuesday after Easter Sunday.  But this year is special because this is the week the United States is expected to have its worst week with this Covid-19 pandemic.  So I am holding back on most things social.

I started my week with a sunrise walk along the maintenance road.  Minnie wasn't limping and Sadie's trot is back to normal. It was 45F, just cool enough for a cotton t-shirt and a nylon overshirt (and jeans and shoes of course!).  I enjoy sunrise walks with partly cloudy skies because of how light is reflected or diffused.  Just as the sun was about to rise at 6:03am, a young coyote stood frozen on the path in front of us, not sure about the dogs.  Once the dogs spotted the coyote, Zeke and Sweetie went into a chase until I reprimanded them and they returned.  They know better than to disobey me, as that means they don't get any chicken jerky strips when we get back home.

Minutes later, not too far from my location, a young coyote pup began howling.  It sounded precariously close to where we were.  It was lone pup.  Was that the coyote that crossed the path, or a hungry pup waiting for its mother's catch of the day?

I enjoy the sounds of nature, but I know that the life of that howling pup will most likely be a short one, killed by humans, hit by a car, or burned to death in a wildfire.  But life still goes on.

We finished today's two-mile walk with a dip in the stock pond, for Minnie's benefit.  This pond will now dry up slowly, and by the end of May will be nothing more than a soggy mud pit until the next monsoons bring it back to life.

***

As I type this, there are now 1.304,142 confirmed cases of the coronavirus globally with 73, 846 deaths; 355,615 in the US with 10,5083 deaths; and  2456 confirmed cases in Arizona with 65 deaths.  There are now nine confirmed cases in Cochise County.  US troops at all installations must now wear face masks when out in public and civilians are now also told to wear them while shopping. Scarfs and face wrappings are also accepted.  I wonder how the community would react if I wore my black tshador that I picked up in Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Storm?

And to end today's post on an ominous note, Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and leader of the Conservative Party, was admitted into intensive care at St. Thomas in Westminster, England after suffering from  coronavirus symptoms for ten days.  This week will turn into the Holy Shit week.