The last several, isolating weeks have felt like an eternity, yes?
I know many of you are struggling. You are navigating the front lines as nurses and physicians, grocery clerks and pharmacists, risking your own health and wellbeing to take care of or provide necessities to others.
You are working from homeâwith no assistanceâwhile keeping your children actively learning (or, on some days, just surviving until nightfall).
Youâre grieving loved ones that you arenât able to spend last moments with or say good-bye to through a proper burial.
You donât know how youâll afford to pay next monthâs rent or whether your business will survive through the summer.
You are truly aloneâliving in a city under lockdown away from your family and significant others because itâs the safer and more responsible thing to do.
Life is unbearably difficult and uncertain for so many people, and I wish I had the ability to comfort and support us all.
In this strange, new reality we each are living, I want to remind you thatâno matter which emotions or uncertainties ruminate through your mind right nowâitâs OK to feel that way.
Yes, there are needs and losses greater than our ownâand we should always be mindful of and compassionate toward othersâbut that doesnât invalidate our own disappointments and pain. Thereâs room for gratitude and grief to coexistâand neither feeling is more acceptable than the other.
So rememberâŚ
Itâs ok if you donât know how to adequately explain to your children why they canât see their friends or go to the park right now
Itâs ok that youâre angry about canceling your baby shower/birthday party/commencement ceremony because those are important milestones in life that you donât always get to repeat
Itâs ok to turn off the news for a while because information overload is causing you more anxiety than not knowing
Itâs ok if your housekeeping putters to a halt because telecommuting and âhomeschoolingâ dry up every droplet of your energy reserves
Itâs ok to laugh uncontrollably one minute and cry in the shower the next
Itâs ok if you fall into a negative headspace because access to your social network and safety nets have been torn from your grasp (just remember that tomorrow is a new day to start fresh or seek help)
Itâs ok to eat junk food in front of the television or have ice cream for dinner
Itâs ok if youâre unable to focus on tasks for long periods of time before ruminations of death tolls and business closures and shortages of supplies begin dancing in your head
Itâs ok to be angry that you still have to go to work, even though youâre keenly aware of how fortunate you are to have steady employment
Itâs ok to be goofyâeven in inappropriate times
All of this is ok. All of this is human. And all of this is a byproduct of living, feeling, and operating within a structure and environment weâve only read about in science fiction and dystopian novels.
None of us have experienced a global pandemic before.
We are writing the rules one by one as each day succumbs to night.
Allow yourself to feel. Apologize when warranted. Laugh when the urge presents itself. Cry when the tension becomes too great. Practice social distancing and responsible behaviors when you do have to go out.
And remain hopeful for tomorrow, because itâs going to be ok.
Cathi says
Very good read. We are all in this together. We must realize that we all need each other to survive this. Let us love one another and forgive one another when we fail..
Catherine says
Thank you.đ We will all get through this.
Jackie says
Well Said!
Catherine says
Thank you, Jackie. And thanks for reading â¤ď¸
Uncle Wayne says
Wise beyond your years!
Catherine says
Thank you, Uncle Wayne. Now to just keep reminding myself when I get overwhelmed.
We are thinking of you both.