that little voice

Let fall begin.

Labor Day marks the end of summer, the beginning of fall, the shelving of white shoes, the shouts of gridiron enthusiasts, and, oh yes, the increase in political mayhem.

Or, that was what we folks in the United States expected when the calendar rolled over to September 1 before COVID-19.

But life has a way of shaking up our normality. The loss of our routine is unsettling (the understatement of this year) and we are left to figure out how to make the best of this new life. Will what we are experiencing become the new norm or will we return to our comfortable expectations next year?

Many say we are dealing with grief at the loss of our expectations being fulfilled. Others say we are angry or sad or fearful about these changes. I have a slightly different perspective: I’m delighted I don’t have to worry about putting away my white shoes and donning black patent leather.

You men may not have been aware in past days the color of a woman’s shoes was a big thing; we didn’t wear those white high heels until after Memorial Day and they went back into the closet after Labor Day.

Today the color of my house shoes makes no difference to me or my doglets. We could care less because who is going to see what we have on our feet anyway? In fact, for Zoom meetings all I need in the way of clothing is a t-shirt, and it can be unironed.

Here in Mexico, we ex-pats remain in social isolation fearing the dreadful virus will cut our waning years off at our shortened knees. And, truth be told, what we wear or how we dress has not been an important topic prior to lockdown. Length of our hair, yes, that has caused concern, but white lace ups? Who cares?

So here we are not worrying about the state of our shoe racks or really if the Dallas Cowboys will finally return to their days of greatness. Instead we are focused on or petrified of who will lead our country through this difficult time.

Now that I think about it, the dilemma of white shoes vs. black patent leather seems like a preferable worry.