Dearest,
All week I’ve been collaborating with clients, tying a bow around last Saturday’s virtual retreat, and thinking about you. Eager to find the space to pen you a note, here I am.
I can’t believe today completes week eight of quarantine and, yet, here we are at the homestretch of it.
One thing I’m noticing is that resiliency is off the charts for people. Wow are we malleable and adaptive!
Okay, I didn’t say we like this change, but I’m impressed by our ability to adjust to it. Zoom meetings, FaceTime calls, Instacart, virtual ballet classes, face masks, teletherapy, online learning, the list goes on and on.
While this experience has been far from perfect, I’m encouraged by how it’s been handled on an individual level. Seriously, you’re amazing!
Here’s an assortment of coping tools that seem to be helping:
Establishing a routine. Making time for daily exercise. Taking regular stretch breaks. Being engaged, not obsessed. Saying “no” to Zoom overload. Staying connected to others. Eating healthy (with guilt-free indulgences). Focusing on what we can control. Planning the week’s MITs (most important tasks). Loving on plant, fur, and human babies. Being gentle with oneself. Not overindulging (e.g., TV, social media, substances, Thin Mints—ahem). Documenting thoughts and feelings in a journal. Paying attention to the body.
While I don’t think we’ll ever really go back to “normal” after this, I do believe we can use this lifestyle shift to notice what has/hasn’t been working in our day-to-day life.
With life different for the foreseeable future, I’m reflecting on which of these changes I’d like to keep.
Open weekends. Online classes. Evening family time. Increased TDJ offerings. Observing the trees fill with leaves. Noticing the moon. A review of commitments.
What about you?
Wishing you a weekend of reflection, moon views, and the scent of lavender. Bisous. x
Nice observations on the positive activities of individuals. I also took away the idea of noticing the moon. Since your Daybook lists the moon phases, I looked up the date ranges of moon phases for May, and then transferred the dates to coincide with New Moon, Waxing Moon, Full Moon and Waning Moon. Then I noted moon phases on each individual day for May and included the prompts you list: setting intentions, action, closure and softening. It’s interesting to see how these states are reflected in my actual feelings/moods. I happened to be in Action mode just as I recorded these and was accomplishing quite a bit in that moment. Then, I seemed to lose motivation, but that did coincide with closure and then softening. I swear I didn’t let myself be influenced! 😉 Anyway, to make this tradition complete, I should actually go outside and observe the moon each night. It’s fun to try these new habits at my advanced age.