Corner Column

Posted 4/22/20

There is so much information swirling around it becomes difficult to keep up with it all, much less to make sense of it.

No sooner do we report something than it changes.

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Corner Column

Posted

There is so much information swirling around it becomes difficult to keep up with it all, much less to make sense of it.

No sooner do we report something than it changes.

We had the April 2 edition ready to go to press when the county’s schools announced they would close until May, and within a few minutes the first COVID-19 case was reported in the county.

By the next morning we had our first stay-at-home order, too late to make the weekly edition.

Then the following week we reported Mineola playground equipment was off limits but parks were still open. By the time the paper was printed that was no longer the case (the parks closed, too).

At least with websites and social media we can keep things mostly up-to-date.

But not always.

There are so many things to keep track of that some inevitably slip through.

It’s not just a moving target; there are many targets and we’re not sure how many or their location. Then throw in a violent wind storm on a Sunday night.

And some of what we see and hear almost defies description. For instance, there’s nothing funny about starting a rumor that children will have to return to the same grade level next year. And yet there it was.

So many are doing so much good during these trying times. And most are making the best of what is clearly a difficult situation, made more difficult because of its unprecedented nature.

I hope somebody is taking notes so we can avoid some of the pitfalls next time around (and yes I am praying there is not another time around).

Is there any part of our existence that hasn’t been impacted?

April 6 passed without a college national championship basketball game. And the next weekend was supposed to be consumed with images of the most picturesque golf tournament in the world. But unless you like reruns, classics they call them, you were out of luck.

The paper is supposed to be filled with pages of high school sports in the spring, but instead we have zip.

The number and variety of activities in the springtime in East Texas is almost countless, but we get none of that. Fundraisers and festivals have gone by the wayside, canceled or postponed. So many events are being moved to the fall that we may not have time for them all.

Birthdays and anniversary celebrations have also fallen victim. Once-in-a-lifetime events like weddings and graduations are thrown up in the air.

Funerals even have limitations.

One thing seems certain – when this does pass, most folks should have no questions about who have been the real leaders among us.