I have to admit, after writing my last post toting about the “positives” of our current global situation, it has been pretty difficult to stay positive.

There are good and bad days. The bar for the “good” days has been set pretty low. I talked to a loved one on the phone, video chatted with a friend, went on a hike, my kids got along and agreed on an activity to do together. Sometimes it can just be that the sun is shining!

The bad days usually stem from “leaving” the comforts of home somehow (either physically, emotionally or virtually). Going to a store or otherwise having to run an errand. Getting emotionally drained by watching or reading too much news. Having to “virtually” leave home to deal with the stresses of my and my kids’ new “remote learning” life.

So what do I find the positive in now? I guess it’s the fact that basically everyone has all of these same feelings. Everyone that I see out, everyone that I talk to, everyone that I see on TV or on the Internet is in the same boat. But it is not a boat- it’s more like an ocean liner and we are just all trying to keep it afloat and keep ourselves positive in the most uncertain time of our lives.

I have seen other postings about how we are “not all in the same boat” and I do agree with that on many levels. I am not in the same boat as an ER doctor or nurse. I am not in same boat as someone who has lost a loved one to this virus. And others are not in the same boat as me, a teacher mom trying to “remotely” teach from home and keep my household from falling apart on a daily basis.

But I think that the storm is the same for all of us. Regardless of our situation, it is because of the uncertainty that we are all feeling. It doesn’t matter who you are, or where you live, you are feeling uncertainty. When will I return to work? When will my kids return to school? Will I still have a job? Will my spouse have a job? Will I get sick? Will my family or friends get sick? When will we all be able to go back to normal? When will this be over?

It is the uncertainty that certainly is the worst. For all of us to do the best we can to keep afloat, we need to be kind and help each other weather the storm. -E

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