It is a crazy and scary time. People all over the world get sick, too many dies and most of the others stay home to not spread the virus. Many have become unemployed, others fight Covid19 on the frontlines. We have an absolutely incapable president that only cares about his approval rates and tv ratings.
But there are many little things that we can be grateful for. These little things are as important as the big ones. They keep us going. They connect us.
Here in California, we are on our sixth week of shelter in place and it starts to wear on me, on my whole family. Yes, we have more time. Time to spend with each other, time to cook, bake, read, play or just hang out. But it is hard. And it is sometimes hard to stay positive. Yet, we have to. I’m trying to focus on the good things we have: My husband and I are able to work from home. We have enough food. We have a dog that makes us go for walks. And we have us. Other people are not that lucky.
I feel like the earth is taking deep breaths right now, too. Air pollution has decreased, the highways are free, I can hardly hear any planes. Life has become slower and quieter and we have more time and attentiveness to see the little things. Every day there has been something that made me very happy so far.
Connections
Trying to stay in touch with your loved ones is probably the most important right now. Group chats, calls, distance chats with the neighbors, playing Scrabble on FaceTime with my mom are all things that have lightened my days. Virtual happy hours and cocktail making can make up for missing meetings in person. Cocktail-to-go is one of the best things that have come out of this crisis. I’m lucky to have friends who share sourdough starter, bread, powdered sugar supply, and kitchen tools with me. And a FaceTime call with an old friend who I hardly even spoken to over the last decade (if we weren’t visiting) made me extremely happy.
Another little thing that made me happy today was to only wait 20 minutes to get into Trader Joe’s, to get my favorite hummus and coffee and to chat with employees that I’ve known for years. I love hearing my 16-year old laugh out loud while chatting and playing Minecraft with her friends. We celebrated a “quaranTEEN” birthday last week with a drive-by birthday caravan. Ok, there are better ways to celebrate, but it was a great surprise for the birthday girl and fun for everyone else, too.
Street Art
Two weeks ago, my younger daughter and I were drawing with chalk on our sidewalk #chalkyourwalk. My daughter found this chalk mosaic on Pinterest and taped the sidewalk herself. I helped her fill it in and while we were kneeling on the concrete, she kissed me (which she hardly ever does voluntarily) and said: “This is awesome mother-daughter-bonding, isn’t it?” A few minutes later, a woman in a car stopped and said: “You two are just adorable.” A few days later, a neighbor dropped off a cake thanking us for our sidewalk art. “It makes me happy when I’m out to walk my dog.” We also got lots of compliments for our painted rocks on the sidewalk and there was a neighborhood “Easter Rock Hunt”. You had to find painted rocks and hide them in a new place. It made me smile every day I walked down the street.
Pets and wildlife
I’m so grateful that my favorite county park is still open and I can take my dogs there for a hike. One day, I met my daughters’ former 5th-grade teacher and we had a lovely distance chat. And it always makes me happy to see the wildflowers and to hear a woodpecker. On a bike ride last week, a coyote crossed the street right in front of me and yesterday, our almost 10-year old chicken Toopy laid her first egg of 2020. I take it as a good sign.
We are also happy and grateful for our girls who are independent learners and who are (mostly) on top of their school assignments. We check in with them and make sure they attend their meetings and do their work. It’s hard to get them outside sometimes, it’s annoying to have to remind them to walk the dog and to do their chores, but overall, I can’t complain.
I guess that is the point. This is super hard and it might last for a pretty long time, but I don’t want to complain. I want to try to stay positive as much as I can, especially for my girls. We have all we need, summer is on its way and I want to try to focus on the good things, even if they’re little.
Take care of you and your loved ones!
