This essay was originally published in February 2022. It has now been five years since the events I wrote about here.

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Everyone has a pandemic story now (as well we should!): Where were you when? And what happened after?

Telling that story, even over and over, can play an important part in coming to terms with the world we’re (still) living in.

Mine revolves around a couple of square miles in the rolling hills north of Athens, Georgia. While Covid wasn’t the reason for the brevity of our stint in the Peach State, it was responsible for almost everything that happened during the second half of our year there.

Reflection questions:

* What do you love (or not) about your neighborhood? Were you stuck there during the first months of the pandemic, and what was it like?

* Do you trust yourself when you have to make a big decision, or do you constantly question whether you made the right choice?

Rocky Drive is located in present day Clarke County, Georgia, on the land of the Tsalaguwetiyi (Cherokee, East), S’atsoyaha (Yuchi), and Mvskoke (Muscogee/Creek) nations.

Image: Hairy balls milkweed.

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