One day at a time

Day 25: Things just aren't normal

This morning I had the pleasure of capturing Malcolm Hughes’ one-man commemoration of Birth of a Nation Day at the cenotaph.

Ordinarily, a full colour party parade would have marched from behind the municipal centre up Veterans Way to the cenotaph, a regal group of veterans, Legion members, military personnel and cadets paying homage to their fallen brothers in combat at Vimy Ridge on April 9, 1917.

When Brooke, my military-hopeful, learned I would be attending the ceremony today, she didn’t hesitate to tag along. And of course, because Brooke was coming, so did Hannah.

Sgt. Willard missed donning her uniform to march with her fellow air cadets and wished she could have put it on this morning, but she stood in solidarity with Malcolm (at a safe distance, of course) and proudly paid her respects.

She even gave Hannah a brief history lesson after the ceremony had ended, showing her the cenotaph, as I spoke with Malcolm about his reasons for coming out to honour the Battle of Vimy Ridge even during COVID-19.

It was strange for me – the first time in nearly a month I’ve met with anyone in-person for an interview. We were both very mindful of keeping our distance, but thankfully downtown Okotoks is eerily quiet these days and there wasn’t much noise to detract from our conversation, aside from a few birds chirping in the trees above.

These are the moments that remind us how drastically different life is for everyone right now.

It seemed unnatural to have only four people in the park where normally a crowd and colour guard would stand.

Unnatural also to be so keenly aware of where and how I stood as I asked my questions.

Even heading into the Easter weekend seems unnatural as we wrap up our week of work and school. There are marked differences in the way we celebrate this holiday, especially given the fact we are practising Catholics and will not be attending masses. We will not be spending it with grandparents, aunts and uncles.

It’s just different.

But we will have our turkey dinner – with our immediate family. There will be Easter eggs and chocolate because I can’t allow the five-year-old to be disappointed. There will be family time and fun.

Hannah plans to make a special delivery to our family’s houses in town (I haven’t been told yet what this is, so I’m curious to see how much of a role I’m expected to play).

I’m also curious to see what next week holds, when I’m back to work on Monday but the kids don’t have school – and yet we are all still in close quarters. Hannah will require a lot of attention and activities, so I’ll be combing through the Pinterest boards this weekend for games and crafts to capture her attention and keep her busy.

It will be a good week of reprieve for the students and teachers who have worked so hard these past weeks to adjust to their new norms. I know my four learners are certainly ready for a break.

Happy Easter to all of your families – it will certainly be one nobody will soon forget.

Krista Conrad, OkotoksToday.ca

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