Pancakes

by Samantha Kisare

It was a good day for chocolate chip pancakes. I grabbed a giant bowl and pancake mix, splashed in some milk, stirred the lumpy batter and poured it on a generously buttered pan. As I watched the batter bubble on the pan, my Dad called. “Happy Easter, Pumpkin!" he exclaimed, "I finally figured out this FaceTime thing!” I laughed, holding the phone with one hand and a spatula in the other. My brothers appeared on the screen, and they waved enthusiastically. My dad sighed, “I feel so bad that you’re by yourself during a pandemic, we miss you. It’s weird that you’re not here.” Oddly, in that moment, I realized for the first time since this pandemic struck, the isolation didn’t feel weird. Somehow, amidst the grief, death, and anxiety, I had created some normalcy. The realization made me feel…Confused? Guilty? Anxious? “I miss you guys too,” I replied. I stacked my pancakes on a plate, filled my favorite yellow mug to the brim with coffee and brown sugar, and propped my phone on my dining table so my family could join me for breakfast.