Pandemic Soul Searching

Does anyone else feel anxiety about life “getting back to normal???”

I’ve heard of these Buddy Benches—Presumably if you’re sitting on the bench then you’re looking for a Buddy to play with.

Now that we’re facing the very real beginning of the end of the pandemic (hopefully!) I feel some degree of anxiety about adding more activities to our lives. Maybe it’s because I’m an introvert, but when the world shut down last year, and in varying degrees throughout the year, I felt a sort of relief. Maybe my anxiety has less to do with introversion and more to do with anxiety! Perhaps that’s my bigger issue. Interestingly, when families are asked to reflect on the positive things to come out of this experience, many of them cite the relaxed schedule: No more (or way less) running from activity to activity, family dinners together, evenings and weekends at home. I concur and yet I feel the tension—I want the kids to have the rich experiences that come from those activities. As a church we’re grappling with the same tension—how to add programs and activities to meet the needs of our congregation without causing families and individuals to hop back onto the hamster wheel. I don’t want to miss or ignore the valuable lessons to be learned from this past year, but I’m not the best Out of the Box Thinker. Have you thought about this? Have you made any resolutions about how you’ll spend your time going forward? How will you protect the unexpected blessings we have experienced.

So I joined Lily on the Buddy Bench! I’ll be your buddy, Lily!!

Even as I write the above paragraph I feel a twinge of shame. For many people this pandemic has heaped suffering and trial into their lives. I recognize that I speak from a place of privilege, and I hope that I use that privilege to only bring a balm of healing to those who have endured undeniable losses and grief. If you’re able, in the midst of your pain, can you share the lessons you learned? Maybe you’ve learned something that is difficult for others of us to hear. It’s in open and honest communication that we learn to understand each other better.

Mom Tax!

One privilege I experience these days is being able to choose how to spend much of my time. As a mom of four, two of whom are online-schooling, sometimes it doesn’t feel like I get much say in how I spend my time, but I do. Today I took advantage of this most perfect of spring days and pruned some trees and pulled some weeds. This evening Lily was asking for some time to get out of the house and do something fun, so I took her to Rita’s and then for a quick romp on the playground. Pro-Tip: Take along a cup and spoon so that you can glean part of your kid’s Rita’s! Call it the Mom Tax!