Monday, May 18, 2020

Near Yet Distant

That's the way it was Saturday on the Nashua River between the towns of Harvard and Lancaster in Massachusetts.  It'd been 8 weeks since the group had last been together.  On that occasion we were closing out another winter hiking season just as every aspect of life was undergoing drastic alterations.

We convened early in the morning allowing us to have the boat launch to ourselves.  Nods and brief hellos replaced handshakes, and each of us went quickly about the business of getting our boats in the water.  We all seemed sober in following the recommended guidelines for social distancing.

The Nashua was flowing nicely thanks to the previous evening's thunderstorms.  The weather was changeable between sun/clouds and warm/cool.  A bald eagle, perched in a tree-top osprey nest, provided a bit of majesty for the occasion...

It was great to paddle with friends again...but at the same time strange having to be continuously conscious of 6 feet of separation.  The "new normal" coming into focus?  It's going to take some getting used to.
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