Perspective: Fridays with Doug

It is Friday again after another turbulent week of fast-moving changes around our state, the country and the world.

Remember when Friday meant the start of the weekend?

Now it seems like it is just another day. Saturday and Sunday involve the same regimen of sitting in front of the television as all the other days of the week. Although during the week, as I work from home, I sit in the recliner and on the weekend I actually recline in it.

With the coronavirus upending our daily lives as we know them, cloistering us in our homes, it is important to appreciate each other as well as the danger this pathogen presents.

A roll of toilet paper has become worth more than a barrel of oil.

How is that home schooling going? Any detentions? I know there have been reports of the janitor flirting with the teacher and vice versa.

How is the home sports scene? Any races across the front yard? I have heard of reports of cheating on the putt-putt golf game being conducted in the hallway.

Mahatma Gandhi said, 'The future depends upon what we do in the present.”

We have to isolate now so that nobody is missing when we are able to gather again.

Just because a goal is put off, delayed or seems out of reach, don't lose sight of it. It is not over until you let the dream die. Never grow defeated from doing the right thing. Continue to lay the bricks for the foundation of your dream and it will be realized.

Having interviewed Washington High School track and field coach Steve Roth, who recently recovered from the virus, my mind-set on the situation has completely changed.

The virus has taken spring sports from high school athletes and thus affected my job covering sports. I resented everything that was happening and thought it was an overreaction. That was my thinking until talking to Coach Roth. Just personally knowing someone that suffered from this contagion flipped my thinking.

'If that is what it took to change you, change people's thinking and make them believe, I'll handle that,” Roth said. 'To give up my 44th year of track season, it's worth it if people are following the rules so it won't happen again.”

Roth described the symptoms he went through and when someone you know suffers like that, it couldn't help but affect my thinking and the effect was a newfound respect for the reaction of our government to shut down schools and business.

Being so tired you want to sleep but your body hurts everywhere to that point it is hard to sleep would be so frustrating. Losing your taste and smell and having to stand up to eat because of the pain in your chest, would be disheartening.

The virus is gone in Roth's body, but the pain lingers.

It has been more than six weeks since he first experienced symptoms and he still struggles with coughing and shortness of breath with pain in the lungs.

Although hearing Roth's story made me sad and scared, it was definitely a positive.

He recovered at home without having to use a respirator and without having spent any time in the hospital. He isolated himself in his basement. His quarantine was so effective that his wife Tammy did not suffer the consequences of catching the virus.

'I personally think it is too soon to open anything back up and I know that hurts businesses, but if we open up and someone dies from it is just not worth the risk,” Roth said. 'We have had to give up so much so I just hope that everybody understands we gave it up for a reason. It is a terrible reason and it won't ease the pain of what I had to go through.”

We have to use that reason to make sure each of us is doing the best they can to contain the contagion.

'I can't go out because of the virus.” sounds weak, whiny and boring. Instead say this, 'I have sworn an oath of solitude until such pestilence has been purged from the land.” I think this sounds much more powerful, valiant, and heroic.

Although there is not much heroism involved in binge watching television, which is what I have done with my 18-year-old, who as a senior at Burlington High School has had his spring play and spring concert lost to the coronavirus.

We have watched all seven seasons of Star Trek: The Next Generation, all four of the movies and the new show, Picard. Granted we were through halfway through Season 5 when school was first suspended. The season of Picard was awesome. It was well worth the watch although we were disappointed we had not seen the Star Trek: Voyager series since there was a prominent character from that show that played a large part in Picard. That is all I will say so as not to spoil anything for those that haven't seen it.

Another show I have watched with my son is Green Acres. Green Acres actor Tom Lester died this week. I can still sing the lyrics to this show's theme song by memory. I thought it was a really fun show so I shared it with my son. He loves the theme song now too. I guess it replaces his time missed in choir. While he likes the show, he points out some of the silly in it. Granted, the show was meant to be silly but sometimes it is just dumb. Most of the time it is hilarious.

Comedy is such an important element in times of stress. It has made the difference in many of the hard times in my life. Being able to laugh at a situation and definitely being able to laugh at myself is a big stress reliever. That is why we have dad jokes.

With so much out of our control with this Covid-19 crisis, many are asking, 'How can I help?” There are many ways to help in the community whether by sewing masks, not hoarding supplies, helping a neighbor (with proper distancing) or encouraging others to be calm and respect the precautions that prevent the advancement of the coronavirus. The sooner the spread is contained, the sooner our sports are back. Oh yeah, and other stuff too.