3.22.2020

Pandemic Ramblings



It’s okay to stop reading the news. Or limit yourself to just 30 minutes a day of news or social media intake. Then put a hard stop to it.

Spend time with friends online. Take a walk together, maintaining 6 feet distance. Get on the phone, and on live chat. Spend time together online not doing anything, simply being together.

Spend time with yourself. What gives you joy? Do that. What have you always wanted to do, but never had time to do? Do that.

Need direction? What are you passionate about? If you don’t know, then how can you explore that? Journal or draw. Spend time outdoors if you have easy outdoor access (sans too many people nearby), barefeet. Look at plants, then look them up in field guides. Draw plants. Find a nice rock, lie down, and simply stare up at the sky.

Still working? Working from home? How can you stay centered and grounded in this time of upheaval, and community anxiety? What grounds you?

Stay active. Free yoga classes are available now online, as well as paid ones. Don’t get mired in all the options. If you need steadiness, then just pick one, and stay the course. If you love all the options (as I do), then bop around and try everything out, so that once we’re back in person again, you know who to go to.

Allow this to be a time of experimentation and transformation.

What of health? Working from home can lend itself to too many snacks and distractions. Surround yourself with healthy snacks and distractions, then. Get up often and do lunges across the hallway, squats, push-ups… you get the idea. Use a foam roller or massage ball, and get the kinks out of your tight shoulders, low back, glutes, whole body. Stay hydrated. Drink warming teas, such as ginger or turmeric. Set up spaces for work, creative play (for example, I have a painting corner, and music corner), and movement (ie. yoga corner).

Create gentle resilience. Find sweetness, stillness, and simplicity in small basic moments. Embrace ease.