Life is Different Now in Lake Wales (Understatement of the Year)

Life in Lake Wales has changed dramatically since early March 2020. Many more people are now truly struggling with making ends meet financially. More people are battling with mental and physical health challenges.

Many non-retirees are inconvenienced with the new way of children "going" to school, and "going" to our job (if we are fortunate to still have employment). Many retirees are inconvenienced with getting around stores, or the new methods for getting medicine.

Community leaders are meeting virtually to discuss how we will move forward as a city, county, state, and country. The way we "gather" for religious worship services is different. There is a renewed respect for jobs (some being done by high school students) and social services that have not seemed glamorous, but are now deemed essential. All of us have had our routines altered long enough that it will take time to transition to "back to normal" or "our new normal".

So what do we do about the new reality we face? I am no expert. I believe the best thing we can do is to ponder what we have been given from a higher power, and how we could help others around us, and then take action.

Why am I living here in this city and country, at this time in history, doing the job (or jobs) I am doing, living in the specific neighborhood I am living, knowing the certain specific people who just happen to be in my life now, enjoying and pursuing the hobbies I enjoy pursuing, with some resources of time, intellect, and/or money that a higher authority has given me? How can I make the best use of time in this day, today, in this specific moment of history?

Maybe that is what I should have been doing before March 2020.

Christian Ponder is the pen name for our newest contributing writer (who really doesn't look like Benjamin Franklin). Since 2001 he has been a resident of Lake Wales, where he enjoys living with his wife and two children.