My First Global Pandemic
Over the last few days, several things
have stuck with me, and while I am trying to focus on getting certain things
done around the house, I felt it was important to address a few thoughts
I had. I will probably get a lot of flack
for some of these thoughts; it doesn't matter, I believe I'm being called to
speak up.
This indeed is an uncertain time for
not just Americans but our entire world.
As Matthew McConaughy has said, "We have an enemy, in coronavirus
that is faceless, raceless, sexless, non-denominational and bipartisan…"
It is scary because of all the unknowns.
As humans, we want to control things; we want to know the outcome, and
in this time of immediate news and social media, we are being bombarded with
information overload, all leading up to BIG unknowns.
I'll admit I've watched and read more
news in the past four days than I have in months. I've been on social media more
than I have been in months. But I've
also been in contact with friends and family more than I have been in months,
too. What I've noticed so far can mostly
fall into two categories, focusing on negatives or focusing on positives.
That realization brought me to this
point; we can learn the facts, look at both the good and the bad, feel the emotions,
and then make a choice. Rick Warren says,
"Rather than life being hills and valleys, I believe that it's kind of
like two rails on a railroad track, and at all times you have something good
and something bad in your life.
No matter how good things are in your
life, there is always something bad that needs to be worked on. And no matter
how bad things are in your life, there is always something good you can be
thankful for."
We have a choice after we've weighed
the information given to us. We can
choose to focus on the bad or do our best to focus on the good by getting
creative, being kind, and choosing love. I've seen political sides bicker and
spew hate through social media. Is this
really productive? How is this helping
anyone? I don't believe there is one
person in a leadership position that is sitting back and saying, "Let's do
nothing, and where the chips fall, they fall." I genuinely believe people
are doing the best they can, with what they have right now. None of us that I know of has vision into the
future. We have not had this particular
virus to fight in the past. We are
learning as we go. As a nation, we have
come to expect our leaders to be omniscient and do precisely what I
want, and if they don't, God help them, insults, and hate are spewed at them
through social media and anyone that hints at thinking the way that leader
does! How does that help anyone?!
I've also noticed so many posts about
feeling sorry for groups of people that are missing out, concert-goers, bike
week attendees, sports fans or players, kids, students, employees, employers, etc. The list is long, and I am not
trying to invalidate any one of those groups of people. What each of them is feeling is a loss, in
some ways, a considerable loss. I believe it is vital
for them to feel the loss, grieve, and for us to validate their feelings, but
let's not get stuck there. As the story
of the Two Wolves ends with, "…which wolf will win? he old Cherokee simply
replied, "The one you feed.""
We have a unique opportunity right now
to help others, especially our children, to grow emotionally. Be the example for others and teach our
children; this is a hard and scary time; however, let's get some perspective. Dictionary.com's
second definition of perspective is a particular attitude toward or way of
regarding something; a point of view.
Are we focused on the slightly flawed brush stroke in the painting? Or, standing back, taking in the entire
masterpiece?
Yes, events have been canceled, huge
rights of passage events, fun events, life-changing events. Our lives are impacted, vacations canceled,
weddings shared only with close family, loss of life, loss of jobs, lots of
loss. The source and summit of my faith,
sharing in the Eucharist at mass, has temporarily been suspended until further
notice. But guess what? Many people before us have suffered tremendously,
and maybe even more so.
Let's take a short inventory; we are
not:
· Not living in a concentration camp
· Not currently fighting a physical war in our
own country
· Not dealing with famine, at least not yet
· Dealing with any current significant natural
weather-related disasters in our country
· Living in the dark ages, we have modern conveniences
like electricity, water, and technology
· Suffering in dirty tents, we have advanced
medical facilities and amenities like teledoc
· Slaves, we live in a free country, and while
we may not like some of our leaders, they are still working with what they
believe is the best interest for our country (Remember this is an election
year, depending on how this plays out, many could be out of a job soon.)
We have much to be thankful for!
So, what can we do to change our
perspective? First and foremost, follow
the CDC US government and your state and local government's guidelines to
protect yourself and prevent the spread of Covid 19. Visit these websites for more information
Then use the following suggestions and ideas
to better yours and your families life in this time of crisis.
· Get eight hours of rest if possible
· Take a social distant 20 to 30-minute walk
every day
· Get some sunshine and fresh air daily
· Make healthy choices when eating, choose
(fresh if you can get it, then frozen then dried or canned, and remember dried
always has more calories) fruits and vegetables, a lean source of protein, complex
carbohydrates, healthy fats and comforting treats only occasionally. (Use food delivery services such as Instacart, Shipt, Uber Eats, GrubHub Walmart delivery or pickup to cut down on your exposure to others.)
· Limit alcohol, caffeine, and sugar
· Drink lots of water, stay hydrated
· Do something for your mental and spiritual
health daily
o
Pray
o
Read
o
Meditate (Headspace
and Calm are both offering free services to help you through this crisis)
o
Do mental puzzles
such as sudoku, crosswords or solving riddles
o
Limit your time
watching the news and online
o
If you must watch
something or be online, make sure you are reading, viewing positive sites that
report the facts, and offer uplifting stories.
o
Learn a new
language; it's never been easier with apps like Duolingo or HelloTalk
o
Color
· Laugh every day!
· Watch uplifting shows and movies or comedies
only. Some of my favorites are:
o
Secondhand Lions
o
Finding Nemo
o
Mulan
o
Mrs. Doubtfire
o
Old Dogs
o
RV
o
The two new
Jumanji movies
o
Bringing up Baby
o
Arsenic and Old
Lace
o
Babe
o
School of Rock
o
Cool Runnings
o
Togo
o
I love Lucy
o
The Carol Burnett
Show
o
The Good Place
o
When Calls the
Heart
o
Signed, Sealed,
Delivered
· Play games, including online connection games
like words with friends, or chess online
· Do a 1000 piece puzzle
· Create whether through art, crafts, sewing
making music or cooking
· Beyond a walk, exercise in a way you enjoy
o
Dance (have a
dance-off with your family)
o
Wii fit
o
Many gyms are
offering free online fit videos
· For those of you who are missing sports events
o
watch great
movies about your favorite sport
§ Remember the Titans
§ Moneyball
§ Miracle
§ The Blind Side
§ Chariots of Fire
§ Caddyshack
o
find something
that is going on, and follow it online (we were following the Iditarod this
week)
· Connect with others through Skype, EBuddy
Messenger, Boxcar, Hicup, WhatsApp, and Hangout, to name just a few.
· There are many things you can do together,
apart… virtually, get creative
o
Watch a movie,
Netflix has something so you can do this simultaneously virtually
o
Join an online
book club or start one
o
Play a board game
(how funny would Pictionary be on Skype?)
o
have a cook-off
or dance-off using one of the above apps
· For your students missing out
o
Host a virtual
class on something fun
o
Host a virtual
party or prom for them
o
Let them connect
virtually with their own creative ideas
o
Have a virtual talent
contest, tape it and post it on Facebook or Youtube
o
Create your own
fun graduation
§ Make a scrapbook or photo montage of your
student's life
§ Rewrite Oh the Place You'll Go using your student
as the main character and your own ideas for them, get it printed through Shutterfly,
Blurb, or another online photo book company.
§ As homeschoolers, our kids get to send in an
activity photo, baby photo, and two graduation phots along with a fifty-word
biography of the student's life or achievements. Put something together for your students,
include your friends, and have a virtual graduation for your students.
§ My kids were always teased, "How do you
graduate, walk down your hall to the living room?" Why not you have a unique opportunity to
really celebrate your kiddo's achievements, get creative make it a graduation
they'll never forget! They will love you
for it.
· Create a Bucket List
· Create a Gratitude List
· Search the internet for other fabulous ideas
to keep you and your family engaged during this crisis.
· I saw an idea about hanging you or your kid's artwork
in your windows so that those taking walks can enjoy it.
· Clean
· Organize
· Listen to music
· Write
· Take an online field trip/tour, again there are
a plethora of places offering this right now.
· Watch some documentaries or educations shows;
we love:
o
Horrible Histories
o
the Who Was Show
o
Drain the Oceans
o
Brain Games
o
Drive Through
History
· Learn online; this is especially important for
your kids; there are tons of free resources out there to help you right now.
· Find resources online that build you up or
help you laugh such as
o
The Resilient
Option
o
Proverbs 31
Ministry
o
Z88.3
o
Dry Bar Comedy
· Build your relationship with your
spouse/significant other; here are some great resources:
o
The Dating Divas
o
Crated with Love
· Build with Lego
· Watch a virtual Opera or Broadway show; both
are being offered right now.
· Above all, try and keep as much normalcy and
routine in your life as you can, breathe, recognize your feelings, feel them
but try to focus on the positives in the world, connect with your loved ones and
have fun.
If you have been laid off, know that you are in my prayers. Seek to find all the local resources you can - food bank, unemployment, any aid available to you. Then get creative, search the internet for ideas on making money at home, check Pinterest for ideas on ways to cut back or make money, sell some things, take some odd jobs. Have your emergency fund, and you're in a good place? Great! Take this time to catch up on stuff at home and help others in any way you can.
This crisis will eventually pass. We are resilient; we will survive. In the meantime, I'll leave you with this.
If you have been laid off, know that you are in my prayers. Seek to find all the local resources you can - food bank, unemployment, any aid available to you. Then get creative, search the internet for ideas on making money at home, check Pinterest for ideas on ways to cut back or make money, sell some things, take some odd jobs. Have your emergency fund, and you're in a good place? Great! Take this time to catch up on stuff at home and help others in any way you can.
This crisis will eventually pass. We are resilient; we will survive. In the meantime, I'll leave you with this.
I'm praying for you all, stay safe, wash your hands and to quote one of my families inside jokes, "GET SOME REST!"
Comments
Post a Comment