Stoned

 

Be safe. We are in this together. Be kind. Be happy. Stay home. Be the change. Rainbow. Smiley face. Apparently, the painted stone thing is its own pandemic, but Covid-19 has clearly rocked the trend. Sorry. So many puns, so little time.

Brightly painted smooth stones have been making their way into nooks and crannies for quite some time, but the pandemic has definitely accelerated the trend. Commonly known as kindness rocks, the trend has a strong appeal to children who are fascinated and delighted by the discovery of these painted rocks. It appears that the artists believe we need these signs of positivity in order to keep moving forward and not be discouraged. In these very strange times, there is no argument there. Hence, we find them in garden beds and perched on walls, on library shelves, next to the playground swings, on a beach, and countless more locations.

Perversely, I’m wondering if the stones could be a bit more focused on the baby boomer demographic. Not too late to save. Try Zumba. Clean out the garage. Age in place. Get your will in order. Think about disability insurance. Unload your stuff. Get rid of your landline. Vote for your grandkids. Don’t fear retirement. Hashtag! Stop printing everything out. Lose the ponytail. Get off your ass. Try new things. Watch your weight. Lose the stupid ringtone. Stop judging. Turn the volume down.

You could place these stones outside the gerontologist’s office, inside the library, over by the shuffleboard court, along the walking trail, in the cooking class, on the bus, in the senior center, or near the ninth hole of the golf course. Anywhere that boomers congregate would be a great place to get stoned. I believe they would promote just as much delight in a 70-year old as the kindness rocks do for the 10-year olds.

So it’s time to rock!

Jay Harrison is a graphic designer and writer whose work can be seen at DesignConcept. His mystery novel, Head Above Water, is available on Amazon and Kindle. You can also visit his author page here.