Empty
I cried in our car at Panera today.
Chris was feeling cooped up, and we decided to drive to Panera to get a To-Go order. You know, to feel more normal.
We pulled up and ordered online from the car. This wasn't weird for us because it's hard to drag 3 kids around, so we sometimes get things To-Go.
But then I went inside. I used hand sanitizer before I got out of the car. An exiting customer and I each silently nodded at one another as we passed, maintaining our 6 feet of separation. Inside, the restaurant was empty. There were only 2 employees to be seen. The cups were stored behind the counter in individual brown paper bags for sanitary reasons. Our order wasn't quite ready in the rapid pickup area, so I waited patiently, completely alone. The employee who brought out our food handed me the food, careful to mainain a good distance and avoid touching hands on accident. I carried our bag out to the car, handed it through the window to Chris, and again used hand sanitizer before getting back in.
It was too much. It was such a small thing, but it made the mundane as serious as work and I just wept. Nothing is normal. And I can't even see an end to this.
Chris was feeling cooped up, and we decided to drive to Panera to get a To-Go order. You know, to feel more normal.
We pulled up and ordered online from the car. This wasn't weird for us because it's hard to drag 3 kids around, so we sometimes get things To-Go.
But then I went inside. I used hand sanitizer before I got out of the car. An exiting customer and I each silently nodded at one another as we passed, maintaining our 6 feet of separation. Inside, the restaurant was empty. There were only 2 employees to be seen. The cups were stored behind the counter in individual brown paper bags for sanitary reasons. Our order wasn't quite ready in the rapid pickup area, so I waited patiently, completely alone. The employee who brought out our food handed me the food, careful to mainain a good distance and avoid touching hands on accident. I carried our bag out to the car, handed it through the window to Chris, and again used hand sanitizer before getting back in.
It was too much. It was such a small thing, but it made the mundane as serious as work and I just wept. Nothing is normal. And I can't even see an end to this.
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