Lucy's Dream

Lucy looked around at the room she was sitting in and surveyed all the clutter. Her mind wandered back to a time when her Mother had made this room a thing of real beauty.

This room was special to Lucy because it used to be the porch and carport of the house her Dad built more than 60 years earlier. It had been closed in and turned into rooms when her marriage of 16 years ended in separation and divorce.

The porch part became this big den for her children and her to use when they moved in with Lucy’s parents over three decades earlier. The carport side was divided into two bedrooms - one for her two sons and the other for her to share with her six-year-old daughter.

The length of the long room matched that of the large kitchen adjoining it…the kitchen that Lucy believed she would always think of as Mama’s kitchen, no matter how many meals she might cook and serve there.

This house was home to Lucy, in a way that no other house ever could be. Still, Lucy held onto her long-time dream of having a house of her own. A house she could plan and design with features that would delight her mind and spirit.

Twice in her lifetime, Lucy had lived in a house that was to be her home (this being one of them) and watched it come together, under construction, after the family had moved in and begun their day-to-day activities of daily living.

Both her Dad and her ex-husband in turn had chosen the building materials, utilities, and other necessities largely according to what was most economical, durable, and aesthetically pleasing.

But none of the choices had ever been hers.

That home of her own had never been attainable.

Now it seemed as if it was a dream she would have to let go.

Prices were always challenging to her budget during her years as a single Mom.

Lucy could remember, more times than she wanted to think about, when she and the children would be shopping for groceries or clothing; one of them would spot some inexpensive item that they really wanted and would ask for with that longing look in their eyes.

But Lucy would have to say, “Sorry honey, I don’t have enough money left to buy that for you today”.

Counting out change had happened a few times when she tried to scrape out enough from her purse to buy the coveted prize; and a few times another customer (or even cashier) had volunteered or insisted on covering the difference.

*****

That was long before Lucy or her children had ever heard of a thing called a pandemic.

Lucy knew the word ‘epidemic’ because the polio epidemic of the 1950s had been in full swing when she was a first grader, and the changes in school and family life, plus the repeated polio vaccine shots, had left an indelible impression on her mind that kept those memories vivid even in much later years.

Lucy’s children were grown up now and had children of their own. A few years earlier, the world was hit with a global pandemic that made the polio epidemic look mild in comparison.

The national and global economy had taken a big hit from shut- downs and changes in the kinds of paying jobs that were available.

Added to the pandemic, weather extremes accompanying global warming were creating food shortages with little hope of it getting better in the near future.

Still, Lucy reminded herself that putting food on the table was more important than buying or building a new house to live in.

She knew it could happen, but her mind had more urgent things to deal with right now.

Note:

This will be a continuing story that will be updated from time to time.

Lucy represents multiplied thousands of people worldwide who have worked and planned for years trying to be able to buy a home of their own, but it has always been just beyond their reach.

After four years of dealing with a worldwide pandemic, and with varying degrees of controls being forthcoming, many people are still struggling to make ends meet - more than ever before - and this writer feels a deep, heartfelt connection with them all.

Let's try to pull together and work to make our individuals countries and the world just a little bit better because we care.