A New “Normal”

Is anyone else tired of that phrase?

First, an acknowledgement of the fact that it has been 9 months since I last posted here. It would be nice if it were for a reason like having a baby (ha ha ha ha) but, no, it is purely trying to adapt to a new normal. With the loss of my mother last August, I have been adapting to a new normal even without global pandemics contributing to the situation.

And here I am – in my Redefined Reality (I like that better) – still trying to figure out what exactly that means.

We human beings tend to think that we are commanders of the ship that we float on. Yet we are learning just how NOT in control we really are at the moment. A microscopic bug has ground life to a halt, reminding us of how powerless we truly are.

The interesting thing is that it’s not all bad…

**DISCLAIMER**DISCLAIMER**DISCLAIMER**

Let the record show that for some people this is positively devastating…lack of work, lack of resources, lack of all the things is destroying some lives – I am aware of that, and it pains me greatly. Not to mention the loss of life that is occurring worldwide…these are VERY much bad things. This stream of thought is more along the lines of finding a bright side on the dark clouds.

On to the sunny side of the street…

This forced home-bound life has reintroduced some interesting concepts…like family-time. Board games have returned to my life with a vengeance. There is also my green-thumb – previously known as the grim reaper. I have had time to actually pay attention to plants and finding joy in them in a way I’d never really known. For work, because we’ve been proactive about ensuring people feel connected in a manner that has led to us to develop a closeness among the staff that had been missing when we were all ensconced in our individual offices.

Yet there is also the frustration – my eldest graduated high school (woo hoo) virtually (ugh). As I have teens who are JUST learning to spread their wings, it is tragic to have to clip their wings right when they want to take off and fly. I have friends I would like to see, but I also know they are not doing the same level of safety precautions that I am, so that’s a no. I am lucky in that I have a couple of close friends who made an agreement to all do the same things, so we CAN interact, but I miss gatherings. And we won’t even talk about trying to date in the age of COVID……

Flipping back to the optimistic side, however, there is great opportunity here. We are being shown in a glaring light the disparities in this country between the haves and the have nots. We can see how money drives life, how the internet is no longer a luxury, what the true definition of “essential” workers is to make life go. We are being forced to see the changes that need to be comprehensively made throughout our country – and world. The question is will we, as a society as a whole, have the smarts and strength to implement them? Or will we put out the visible fire, and ignore the subterranean mine fire that continues to burn?

To effect true change begins with each of us. What things have you adopted (or want to adopt) just for you during this time? Will you maintain them? What about for your family? Your neighborhood? It is the ripple effect. A small pebble dropped in a body of water can create incredibly large ripples that go on for a long time. No one of us has the ability to make dramatic change world-wide in an instant, but small changes at a personal level can truly begin to make a difference.

For me, I am picking my pen back up, because I have been told it sometimes makes a small difference. I am resuming working out and doing self-care. I am reconnecting with some of the charities that have meant a lot to me. And, most importantly, I am finding new and innovative ways to connect with the PEOPLE in my life, on a variety of levels.

Life is about connections. If we do not connect with people, places, things that are around us, we are missing out on so much magnificence the world has to offer us. So take the time today to think about what matters to you, and find a way to focus on it.