COVID CRAZY

 

This weekend I had an unusual experience.  I actually went into a restaurant and had dinner with my family!  It was glorious!

It's amazing how many things we take for granted and how we can adapt when we have to.  However, I found it interesting that I was actually happy to see a restroom with more than one person in it, and some maskless faces other than my own family's.

We were fortunate to not have as bad a time with Covid as many other areas in the country.  It's one of the advantages of living in an isolated rural area. There are a lot of minuses, (mainly internet access, and deliveries), but there are times where living "in the boonies" can be a good thing. 

I won't go into the pros and cons of different types of precautions, or any political issues, (I won't discuss them on this forum), what I'm interested in is how we all coped with this massive change in how we live.

When we were asked to shut down to help "stop the spread," we were happy to do so. Fortunately, no one in my family in California, Oregon or Ireland got Covid, and there were several with pre-existing conditions.  We feel very fortunate.

Coping with this crisis has been very difficult, even though we didn't experience the worst of it as so many have. The hard part was watching friends with businesses struggle with the ever changing regulations. One week they were on this level, the next week another.  The stress and anxiety they suffered can't be explained unless experienced.  Suffice it to say, that we're glad to see that so far they have survived. 

I've seen how this has affected my son and other college students.  He had one term of normal college life, (fortunately, it was a football season when his school, the University of Oregon, won the Rose Bowl!). He spent too much of the second term at home sick, and then came back home to try to do his third term long distance.

Here's the thing.  We have satellite internet.  It's not reliable and streaming is impossible.  He had to notify all of his professors that he couldn't do "Zoom" classes and because of that he couldn't take a full load.  He also couldn't get a job because everything was shut down.  It was a tough time.

He's pretty resilient, but one of his roommates couldn't cope and dropped out for two terms. Distance learning doesn't work for everyone.

The sad part is watching these young people who should be having the time of their lives, sitting in their rooms and staring at a screen all day.  There's no study groups or tutoring sessions.  Group projects are a nightmare.  Their social lives are non-existent. It makes me so sad.

My mother used to have an active social life; bridge parties, church, symphony concerts, and eating out with friends.  Gone, all of it. She was fortunate to have her pets who kept her occupied, but all of her friends are lonely and depressed. She's been considering moving into assisted living, but is terrified of being locked away from her family. 

My husband and other family members work in essential industries so fortunately, we didn't have to deal with unemployment issues. However, the dread of one of us getting Covid was omnipresent.

These are all things we never thought we'd face.  Who would think it?

Now that hopefully we're coming out of this nightmare it's time to think about what we've learned from it, how we've changed, and what we can do to prepare ourselves for future unfortunate events that are out of our control.

Since we live in a rural area we are prepared for all kinds of events.  Fires and snowstorms occur often enough that making sure you have a supply of food and fuel on hand is routine.  We never let our vehicles go below half a tank of gas.  I keep a pantry full of food I can prepare with just hot water cooked on our outside grill, (for which we always have a back up container of propane). We have firewood and water on hand. We also have wonderful neighbors who pitch in and help each other out.

One thing we love having is a dial phone for use during electrical outages.  I know many people no longer have landlines, but many who do don't realize that the modern cordless phones require electricity to work. I bought an inexpensive dial phone that I plug directly into the jack of our landline. It's wonderful to hear the dial tone, (although I feel like I'm a teenager again, gabbing with my friends and twirling the phone cord!). Oh, and make sure you make a list of those important phone numbers!

However, these are just precautions for our physical needs.  What about our emotional ones?

I enjoy hanging out with friends and entertaining, but I'm also perfectly content reading a book or working on a sewing project. I'm fortunate because I have a husband and, for the first six months, a son at home. I wasn't lonely.

My mother would have struggled more if it hadn't been for her two pups, who kept her company. I can't imagine living alone with no pets and not being able to go out and socialize. For many people it's torture.

My mother has a friend who was always very busy.  She entertained all the time, played bridge and other card games several days a week, attended church functions, ate out, and went to concerts, the movies, and the theater at least a couple of times a month. The last year has seen a major decline in her physical and mental health. It's so sad.

What can we do to prepare ourselves emotionally for the next pandemic? And, how can we help our friends and family get through it without all of us going crazy?

I think the solution lies within ourselves. First of all we need to develop more than one hobby or interest so we don't burn out on one or the other. 

Visit a used bookstore and pick up a few books you've always wanted to read and set them aside to savor. Fill up your Kindle with free books, (check out  https://www.bookbub.com/ebook-deals/free-ebooks ) you can select the genres you're interested in and they'll select books for you to choose from. There are also other books available for sale from .99 to 2.99. Bookmark it and check it everyday.

If you play a musical instrument, use the time to practice. If you'd like to learn how to play, there are a lot of great tutorials online. 

Tackle a project you've been wanting to get done for a while.  Sort through your photos, organize your closets and kitchen, clean out your garage. Keeping busy and physically active at the same time can't be anything but good for you, it passes the time, and you've accomplished something as well. We worked on multiple projects during the lockdown and now we're enjoying them, (and have more free time!).

I got through the first six months of the lockdown swatching and organizing all of my fabrics. I went through everything. Small pieces I set aside to make precut squares and strips. Anything over an eighth of a yard was swatched and stapled to a tag color coded to its storage location. It might not take you as long as it took me, (I've been quilting for 40 years!), but it's been a huge help. Now when I'm designing a quilt I can use my swatches instead of pulling fabrics from my multiple storage locations. 

And, (as if it has to be said), quilt up a storm! Finish some UFOs, sort your fabrics and supplies, reorganize your sewing space, and try a new technique or two.

The other thing I think is really important is to keep in touch with your friends.  Texts and emails are great, but phone calls are even better.  Both my brother and I have a set time we call our mother every day. She looks forward to our calls, and we can check on how she's doing. My mom calls her best friend every afternoon and they have a chat and a glass of wine together. They both look forward to it. 

If you have a friend who's alone set a time to talk.  Even if it's only a time or two a week, it will give them something to look forward to. Oh, and make sure you have that emergency dial phone so your family and friends don't worry why they haven't heard from you if your electricity goes out.

When I was in college I took a speech class. The final was to write and deliver a valedictorian speech. I decided to focus on what's really important.  Not the grand plans and dreams of graduates, but the way we treat each other. I called it "Take Care of Your Own Little Corner of the World." We can't change a whole lot of what life throws at us, but we can try to make it better for ourselves and our loved ones.

Susan