A recent conversation with a very wise person inspired the following, so while I can’t take credit for all of it, I’ve tried to make the words my own:
One of the outcomes of this recent stay-at-home situation is that we have all been given a gift of time. It is up to each of us to determine how best to take advantage of this gift. If you are still working but working from home, instead of gazing out the office window or scrolling through Facebook during an idle moment, you can use that moment in another way. Connect with a friend by phone, water your plants, go for a walk. If you are out of work, you can use the time to learn a new skill or update your resume or LinkedIn profile. If you’ve been thinking about quitting your job and starting something new, the first (and often the hardest!) step may have already been done for you. Figure out what you want to do next and start preparing for it.
One of the most frequent things I hear from people is a statement that starts out with “when this is all over….” When what is all over? Life? No, this IS life. This is change. We’re probably not going to return to “Before” in terms of everything being exactly the same. We’re likely going to move on to “Next.” And Next will be different. I hear people talk about the “new normal” like it is some idyllic, static situation. It’s not. Many things will return to the way they were before, but many won’t. As an example, Kathy & I have found that cooking at home and not eating at restaurants is good for us. Maybe that’s our Next. It’s probably not a good idea to hop onto a cruise ship for a while. Maybe that’s our Next. We can’t wait to get in the car and drive 5 or 8 or 10 thousand miles on a road trip. We could do that now but it probably won’t be a lot of fun. Hopefully in another month or two that might be possible. Maybe that’s our Next.
I’ve got a whole list of projects and priorities that I’m working on. I hope I get a lot of them accomplished. I also hope that I don’t, because that will hopefully mean that we’re getting back to some of the things we’ve had to put off during this time. We’ll see. But in the meantime, we’ll take a day at a time and when it’s time to pack the car and head off, you can bet we’ll be ready!
Well written post. I’m with you on things never being normal, that’s not what change is about. I like your use of the word “next.” If you don’t mind I would like to use it and give you the credit.
I also have been reaching out to more people and especially vie the phone. Probably spent more time on phone calls the past three weeks than I did the previous 3 months. I know that text messaging is also a good way to connect, and I do that, but it ain’t the same.
I’ve been into the projects also. Finally cleaned up that dark corner of stuff in the living room. Feels better in there and the room looks bigger. I’ve done more writing, reading and journaling. I’ve saved money by skipping the coffee shops which is a good next for me. I don’t have a list but I need to start one.
By the way, your perspective on the pizza cutting is great. Way to go, now I’m thinking of pizza for lunch.
If you find something I’ve written that is coherent enough to share, feel free! 😉
I know that a number of people are doing constructive things with this time, but since I only hear from smart people I’m a little biased. 🙂
I’m glad to know this struck a chord with you!