The other day, my middle son was reading on our back porch. I rolled out to meet him.
“Hi, I’m taking your temperature,” I stated cheerily.
He rolled his eyes and made drastic moves to quickly leave his chair. You see, typically when I say, “I’m taking your temperature,” to my family, it is my euphemism for asking about their mental health and well-being. And my middle son is a scientist by nature. And he’s a guy. Talking about feelings makes him quite squirmy and uncomfortable.
This time, I wasn’t actually asking my son about his feelings or his emotional state. I had just gotten a brand new infrared thermometer delivered and I literally wanted to take his physical temperature. Now that is something that he could sink his teeth into. He couldn’t wait to get his mitts on the brand new, gadget-y thermometer himself, to take the temperature of everything in the house – the dogs, the stove, his sister’s history book. I already knew that this would be the case, and I knew that the thermometer would be good for his health – his emotional health most of all.
So, friends and readers, I know that you are out there. I see the numbers, but you’ve been very quiet lately. What’s your temperature? Mine is 97.9 degrees. I am mildly disturbed by all that’s going on, but I am doing my best to cultivate new interests. My temperature was helped greatly yesterday, by having a Zoom meeting with my little third grade mentee and today, I look forward to an afternoon Zoom meeting with my 10th grader. All the red tape has finally been cut and I get to see the beautiful faces (on screen, at least) of the girls who I have been mentoring all year. Kids are so resilient. It does my heart a lot of good to know that they are doing alright. How’s your heart doing, friend?
Please report your temperature in the Comments section. Sometimes just writing it down, is the best medicine. It’s okay if you are running a little fever. That is understandable. And if your fever is running really high, you need to be honest about that fact. It means you need some help. That’s okay. We are all in this together. All of our temperatures will fluctuate during this time, even if none of us (praying for that fact) actually come down with the coronavirus. Remember, friends, to take your temperature frequently during this period. You are your own caretaker and caretakers do their best healing when they know exactly what they are dealing with. Chicken soup is a universal remedy that heals a lot. Perhaps your fever is running a little high today and some chicken soup is in order. I’ll write you a prescription for a little chicken soup today and I’ll think of you, while I am sipping on mine. Chicken soup, a little nap and remembering the fact that tomorrow is Friday, is probably what will be good for all of us, today. Take good care. See you tomorrow.