Hard times tend to give us tunnel vision. I’ve been easily slipping into negative thought patterns these days. There is so much I was looking forward to after spring break: the Big Event, spring game, sunny days in Blacksburg, HC events, nights with friends, sunsets at the Pylons and more. Uncertainty about the state of my summer internship and if I’d even be able to go back to Blacksburg as a student before I graduate this fall. My classes have only gotten more difficult after being moved online. Some professors give excessive amounts of assignments and it’s hard to focus at home, especially with the fact that life as we know it has been flipped upside down. Then there is the fear that someone I love will be the next person affected by COVID-19. All of this and more has been bouncing around in my head for the past few weeks.
I’ve seen so much on social media about how we should be using this pandemic to improve ourselves. Use this moment to be creative. Pick up a hobby you have always wanted to try. Do this workout plan for the perfect body, you have all the time in the world now! Read those books that have been just sitting on your shelf. Clean out your closet. Give your room a complete makeover. Think of this time as a gift.
Don’t feel obligated to use this epidemic as a time to start working on yourself. There is so much uncertainty right now, it’s easy to get lost in it all. You don’t need to bounce back from COVID-19 with a better body, a book written, interior design skills or whatever else.
It’s hard to stop comparing myself to others and then beating myself up for not doing more. I try to remember this Morgan Harper Nichols quote through it all, “I hope you know it’s okay if your strength looks a little different this season”.
For this season, I think strength can be trying to stay whole through the complete uprooting of normal.
