Dealing with Our Shelter-in-Place Lives

A few weeks into this stay-at-home order we’ve been heeding in some parts of the United States, I reached out to a colleague who seemed to need an ear. During our conversation, I reassured her that she wasn’t alone in feeling lost. I shared that I had had a downward spiral just a few days before and had to lift myself out of it.

“That’s what I need to know,” she said. “How did you do that?”

Well, let me start here. I’m not about to give blanket advice to those going through this who are dealing with forces I’m not — i.e., home schooling, dicey marriages, mental health issues, fear around loved ones on the front lines, restless teens. I am also not prone to feeling lonely because I treasure my solitude and have long since stopped being sucked into the ‘traditional or bust’ way of living.

All that said, we are being challenged in ways we couldn’t have dreamt of. Imagine ushering in 2020 with big plans and having a pandemic say, “You think getting through 9/11 and Superstorm Sandy tested your mettle? Hold my beer.”

From the outset of this in early March, I have mostly treated this time as a chance to reflect, be, and grow. I see it as a re-set. Don’t be fooled that this means I’m sitting on a stash of cash. I’m not. My “money job” is on hold and I don’t know if it’s ever coming back. The senior citizens…