Connecting While Sheltering
We made it through the first two weeks of social distancing, staying at home, sheltering in place, flattening the curve, however you like to think of it. One side of my brain says, "Has it already been two weeks?" While the other says, "It has only been two weeks?!" The days blend together into one long, nebulous form that often takes the shape of a terrifying and unpredictable rollercoaster when I'm home alone with two small children. In two short weeks our priorities have changed and we have adopted a new vernacular around COVID-19. Sometimes it's hard to remember what life was like before the invasion of the virus.
How's everyone doing out there? What has been the highlight of your week, and the hardest part of your week? Did anything make you laugh today?
Like most of you, I'm spending way too much time on social media. The news is increasingly foreboding, and there's a strong sense that the worst is yet to come, but it is also meaningful to see how people are responding to it all. There's self-reflection, there's productivity and projects, there are people sharing their gifts in unique and creative ways, there's also relaxation and letting everything go, there's humor and a sense of togetherness, there are recipes and fitness routines for inspiration, there's an expression of a wide range of emotions, there are conversations about mental health and trauma informed care, and a sense of people reaching out more than they normally would. I'm very curious to see what (if any) lasting effects this crisis will have on our culture.
It's a strange dichotomy. We're isolated from one another, but reaching out to connect more than ever. We're protecting ourselves, but also sensing that, as humans, we can't survive without others. I've had more FaceTime and Zoom meetups with my family and friends in the past two weeks than I had in the past year. And, as a twist of ironic humor, I've met more of my neighbors out on walks during our quarantine than I ever did in the previous six years that we've lived in this neighborhood. Whenever I feel especially depressed or devastated about this crisis, I experience solace knowing that we're all in this together. And while this may be debatable from a philosophical perspective, I'd like to believe that humans are innately altruistic and that we are cooperative when it comes to survival.
Catastrophes invite people to reflect on their place in the world, and I have felt quite existential lately. In two short weeks our entire concept of our place in the world, our relationship with other humans, our purpose, and our worldview have turned upside-down. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around everything and what this all means.
This quote from a recent interview in a New Yorker article really hit home for me:
"Epidemics are a category of disease that seem to hold up the mirror to human beings as to who we really are. That is to say, they obviously have everything to do with our relationship to our mortality, to death, to our lives. They also reflect our relationships with the environment—the built environment that we create and the natural environment that responds. They show the moral relationships that we have toward each other as people, and we’re seeing that today."
Epidemics like this one are humbling. Everyone is at risk, no one is exempt, and management depends on every individual doing his or her part. At the same time, though, it also points to human dignity and the worth of every individual, and calls us to appreciate the value of individual human lives rather than get wrapped up in statistics or pictures of coffins. One of the things that make our current situation difficult to cope with is that, unlike a natural disaster or a sudden attack, the end may be weeks or months away, and it is still very unclear how bad things will get before they start to get better.
I'm thankful for this time with my children. Never again will I have them all to myself for weeks on end. But while we laugh and grow together and work on our relationships, I won't pretend that it's easy. Three-year-olds and newborns are demanding in different ways and I am stretched to my limits many days. The days are simultaneously really long and really short. We're doing home school, creating curriculum as we go, designing lessons around topics that Ady expresses interest in. And we're also keeping it flexible. Kids crave routine and need structure to thrive and feel safe, but I'm also a strong believer in unstructured playtime to foster creativity and imagination, so we're working on finding a balance. I've given up on getting everything done that I had hoped to accomplish in this time, but the letting go has been therapeutic as well. We've done a lot of cooking and baking (oh, and eating...) the past couple weeks and it's fun to explore new recipes and involve Ady in the process.
Every day of this pandemic is heartbreaking and scary, but we are helping each other survive by connecting, appreciating beauty, expressing gratitude for the earth, and finding the humor when we can.
How are you all surviving? What creative avenues are you exploring?
How's everyone doing out there? What has been the highlight of your week, and the hardest part of your week? Did anything make you laugh today?
Like most of you, I'm spending way too much time on social media. The news is increasingly foreboding, and there's a strong sense that the worst is yet to come, but it is also meaningful to see how people are responding to it all. There's self-reflection, there's productivity and projects, there are people sharing their gifts in unique and creative ways, there's also relaxation and letting everything go, there's humor and a sense of togetherness, there are recipes and fitness routines for inspiration, there's an expression of a wide range of emotions, there are conversations about mental health and trauma informed care, and a sense of people reaching out more than they normally would. I'm very curious to see what (if any) lasting effects this crisis will have on our culture.
It's a strange dichotomy. We're isolated from one another, but reaching out to connect more than ever. We're protecting ourselves, but also sensing that, as humans, we can't survive without others. I've had more FaceTime and Zoom meetups with my family and friends in the past two weeks than I had in the past year. And, as a twist of ironic humor, I've met more of my neighbors out on walks during our quarantine than I ever did in the previous six years that we've lived in this neighborhood. Whenever I feel especially depressed or devastated about this crisis, I experience solace knowing that we're all in this together. And while this may be debatable from a philosophical perspective, I'd like to believe that humans are innately altruistic and that we are cooperative when it comes to survival.
Catastrophes invite people to reflect on their place in the world, and I have felt quite existential lately. In two short weeks our entire concept of our place in the world, our relationship with other humans, our purpose, and our worldview have turned upside-down. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around everything and what this all means.
This quote from a recent interview in a New Yorker article really hit home for me:
"Epidemics are a category of disease that seem to hold up the mirror to human beings as to who we really are. That is to say, they obviously have everything to do with our relationship to our mortality, to death, to our lives. They also reflect our relationships with the environment—the built environment that we create and the natural environment that responds. They show the moral relationships that we have toward each other as people, and we’re seeing that today."
Epidemics like this one are humbling. Everyone is at risk, no one is exempt, and management depends on every individual doing his or her part. At the same time, though, it also points to human dignity and the worth of every individual, and calls us to appreciate the value of individual human lives rather than get wrapped up in statistics or pictures of coffins. One of the things that make our current situation difficult to cope with is that, unlike a natural disaster or a sudden attack, the end may be weeks or months away, and it is still very unclear how bad things will get before they start to get better.
I'm thankful for this time with my children. Never again will I have them all to myself for weeks on end. But while we laugh and grow together and work on our relationships, I won't pretend that it's easy. Three-year-olds and newborns are demanding in different ways and I am stretched to my limits many days. The days are simultaneously really long and really short. We're doing home school, creating curriculum as we go, designing lessons around topics that Ady expresses interest in. And we're also keeping it flexible. Kids crave routine and need structure to thrive and feel safe, but I'm also a strong believer in unstructured playtime to foster creativity and imagination, so we're working on finding a balance. I've given up on getting everything done that I had hoped to accomplish in this time, but the letting go has been therapeutic as well. We've done a lot of cooking and baking (oh, and eating...) the past couple weeks and it's fun to explore new recipes and involve Ady in the process.
Every day of this pandemic is heartbreaking and scary, but we are helping each other survive by connecting, appreciating beauty, expressing gratitude for the earth, and finding the humor when we can.
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| Yoga class while sheltering in place |
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| Staying in our PJs and soaking up some extra sister snuggles |
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| Making rice krispie treats together |
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| Crafting |
How are you all surviving? What creative avenues are you exploring?
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