Pat Taub
In the beginning of my lockdown I was antsy: irritated at not being able to see friends, eat out, and plan a summer trip with my grandchildren. My days were endless and depressing.
An initial lockdown frustration was not knowing when I would see my grandkids again. This photo is from Aug., 2019
Once I settled into the lockdown, I began to re-examine my lifestyle choices. Why had I been making all those trips to the mall for clothes I didn’t need, or patronizing expensive restaurants several times a week? I had drunk the Kool Aid, turning me into a voracious consumer. Bingo, a big silver lining!
I’m not alone. Lots of folks have discovered silver linings in their isolation. Here’s a sampling from members of the WOW Facebook community.
On Consuming:
TRISHA:
I realize how little I need in the way of material things, but need the company of loved ones. Things aren’t important. People are.
WALKER:
Things I thought I needed, I’ve found I don’t need.
The lockdown has made many women realize how much unnecessary shopping and consuming they’d been doing.
PAM:
I’ve broken a bad habit of getting a large nonfat Chai Latte most days and saving the $5.
A Greater Appreciation for the Simple Things in Life
NANCY:
I’m enjoying more smiles and neighborliness, and once in a while a “Stay safe” from someone I don’t know.
JANET:
I’ve discovered a profound appreciation for what nature I can access right now.
Janet, in deep appreciation of her natural surroundings
KRISTINE:
The air is getting cleaner . . . We are learning to appreciate the good things that matter and leave the rest behind.
WENDY:
Thinking a lot about how we need to change our relationship with the earth and with each other.
ALICE:
I’ve been re-evaluating how I eat, trying to follow a planet-friendly diet of no meat and more vegetables.
The lockdown has prompted many to examine how their diet contributes to climate change
Deepening Personal Connections
KATE:
My city-living daughter was visiting when the stay-at-home order went out. I love having all this time with her. The feeling is mutual.
KATHY:
Reading bedtime stories to my grandbaby via Face time.
LISA:
Time to take a walk with my husband every day.
MARGIE:
I’ve got my work-from-home husband to do some chores that have been waiting for the day when he didn’t have to go to the office.
CAROL:
I’m saying, “I love you,” to friends and family more often.
Honoring One’s Self
SUZANNE:
Napping anytime I want, just like our cats.
BARBARA:
Selfishly sleeping as late in the morning as I want.
KAREN:
I’m reassessing my life in many ways. I’m listening to myself.
DEBI:
Reading many good sci-fi books I would never have time to read if not in isolation.
MARCI:
I’m more conscious of trying to live in the moment.
DOREEN:
Deepening my meditation.
Creative Openings
JEAN:
I’m determined to write a history of my house of 50 years with all the funky lodgers who have lived there.
MICHELE:
I’ve picked up a new guitar and I’m playing it.
KATHY:
I picked up my son’s violin and am making the most amazing screeching sounds.
SUSAN:
I’ve talked for years about writing my memoir and now I’ve actually started it.
We’re living at a time when the pause button has been set. The choices are clear. We can agonize over all we’ve lost, become grumpy and depressed, or we can use our isolation to discover new portals for personal growth and connections.
To be sure, future days will bring frustrations and down times, but if you stay alert to uncovering the silver linings, you can emerge from your lockdown with greater self-awareness and closer connections to loved ones.
If you keep your dreams alive, post lockdown you’ll have a draft of the book you’ve been longing to write, pride in learning how to play a musical instrument, or you will have fulfilled another dream that’s been collecting dust. What do you have to lose?
