Remember, and hope for the better

To the editor:

There is sadness about Briar Hill’s pool closing for the season. Lots of good-byes, so-longs and Jewish new year greetings — even from the non-Jews. A sweet year!

We were a community here. We were complainers and gabbers and friends in this awful time.

It reminded me of my last days in the bungalow colonies of the Catskills. We packed up, closed the door, and headed home for school. Of course, I was a kid then. But this particular summer didn’t feel that way.

I can’t explain it. So much is different with this pandemic.

The cute little pool kids return with their knapsacks and their fancy masks. Staff members move on to their jobs and school. And us senior citizens — we old folks — amble out, hoping to return to our lounge chairs and umbrellas in a year.

Riverdale is different. The world is different. I am not sure how to deal with it again. I Zoomed my way through lots of hard times with book groups, painting classes and writing programs. I saw my family on Zoom every Sunday.

But during times when a little bit of normalcy peeked its head through, I went to restaurants — even museums — met friends, and talked about things other than pandemics and wars and floods and vaccinations. I even tried to plan a vacation.

So happy end of summer. Sing all those end-of-summer songs. Remember. Remember and hope once again for a better time.

Judith Veder

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