If I have learned anything during the current coronavirus crisis, it has been the breath of fresh air sensation I’ve experienced from being forced to slow down. Many, many, many people used to an explosive, harried lifestyle of earning money, finding childcare, doing take-out dinners, paying bills, and planning fancy vacations have all been forced to stop going out in a phenomenon known as “social distancing,” coined by the friendly folks at Washington Post.
No matter what peoples’ social or economic circumstances have been, we’ve all been asked to practice social distancing by avoiding going out to public places to give the coronavirus a chance to die down and curb the infection rate significantly. I’ll be the last to complain about the social distancing aspect and the first to express gratitude for this unprecedented moment to slow down in life.
It has been said many times before that slowing down in life helps us appreciate the small things in life and to smell the proverbial flowers. The same is true for using less technology and engaging in more real conversations and old-fashioned communications and far less impersonal texting, facetime, and emails.
Everyone’s experience during the current social distancing practices varies. Some are funny, some are very sad, others, like mine, have turned into pleasant, unexpected moments that have caused great peace and tranquility into a former life of constant pressure, driving, packing, preparing, cleaning, and doing the 1,000-mile dash to check off the completion boxes on our never-ending list of domestic chores.
I’ve had so many projects gathering dust, it’s not even funny. I have heard from a few artists that this has been a welcome change in pace to their daily lives and has allowed for extra time to reinvigorate old and forgotten creative projects. I concur with that and more.
It just seems like I get on a roll about praising how exciting my writing career is turning out to be and then, the realities of life get dumped on my head like a rude bucket of cold water. No one wants to wake up from turning their dreams into a reality. I’ve done that selflessly to care of my daughters, their needs, their extracurriculars, and the needs of my house. I’ve put my own artistic and writing projects on hold for so long.
But now that I have no choice but to distance myself socially from the public due to the current health crisis, like everyone else throughout the United States, I’m being forced to slow down. As of today, it is only day 3 of a month-long cancellation of schools and so far, I’m relishing the slow pace of things.
I’m excited to gain progress and make some definite headway on my writing in these forthcoming days. Maybe I can start enjoying the simple things in life again as I work to balance the “new” reality of slow life with my work. Maybe I can also let my hair down a bit and enjoy laughing at good old-fashioned comedy bits like I Love Lucy.
