Our COVID Challenge

This is a bittersweet moment. We are challenged to live in the now. To find the inner strength to cope with so much uncertainty. To accept our lack of control for once and for all. To be compassionate with ourselves when we yell and lose our s$*#t because we don’t like what’s going on! For some of us who have decided to practice accepting this COVID reality, it can be a little easier than for others. A little easier, because all of us have panicked at some point during these last few weeks. As we think about how to plan for our future, we worry for our sake, our children, our parents, our community.

Most of us love control. We hate ambiguity. Why do you think setting up routines and schedules was the number one shared meme and blog post int he last weeks? We thrive on schedules. It brings us security. The problem is that we stop there and panic when it’s ripped away from us. Our quality of life is attached to the efficiency of the routine. I will add that our self -esteem is also intertwined with the to-do lists and schedules. Let’s challenge this. We need to go a step further and we are now forced to take giant leaps. Faster than we ever fathomed.

We are being challenged to stay grounded when everything around us is shifting. But we forget, everything is constantly changing anyway. Now, it’s in our face. We must realize how much our actions create a ripple effect in our society. In moments of crisis, we find the strength and resources that we never knew existed within us. To be in the moment is to be in control because in living in the now, we can tap into our productivity, strength, creativity. Our perception of reality is in our dominion.

Gentle Times

As I write this, my children are home playing. I try to smile because they are enjoying themselves and I’m happy they’re home with me. They bicker and they play again. I smile because I want to shelter them from what’s going on in the world. But, I am feeling the pull for work. The angst of uncertainty. The strain of the healthcare system. The weight of the mental health issues felt by all of us that don’t stop just because everything else stopped.

We are all interconnected. We need to support one another now more than ever. We need to ask for help and take it! We need to challenge ourselves to enter this new perception of reality with COVID. To be gentle and to be flexible. Gentle with our inner critic and harsh judgment when we lose it and cry and yell.  I’m not justifying or condoning violence or losing one’s temper. I’m trying to help you tame it by understanding yourself and using that as a springboard for a change instead of one that comes from criticism and disdain. This just breeds more self-loathing and disdain for others leading to yelling and acting out and the cycle continues.

​But, by being gentle, you can take a better look at yourself. Your shortcomings won’t be justified or packed up in overeating, overdrinking, or yelling. You can learn to change and adapt when you find you are worthy of a better life. With flexibility, we will create new strength. And we will learn to adapt. Because that’s what we do and we’re good for it.