Do you feel like you are beginning to pick up the pieces after the pandemic? I do. I am recognizing that our will to survive throughout the pandemic meant that some aspects of life as we know them became neglected, fractured, or lost, and now that we are hopefully seeing the end of this dreadful pandemic, we are beginning to pick up the pieces. We can do this haphazardly or we can do this with good intent and action.
To intentionally pick up the pandemic pieces, we first have to acknowledge the areas of life that have been neglected, fractured, or lost?
Relationships
Our relationships in many ways were neglected, fractured, or lost during the pandemic because of the limitations and lifeways the pandemic posed. Some, without their usual social outlets may have become disgruntled or frustrated while stuck at home. Others may have realized that they want lives with greater home time and isolation. Still more suffered from the loss of the familiarity and joy that in-person connections create, and others may have found new long lasting connections during this intimate time. There were relationships that became stronger too because people had more time to care for each other in simple, loving ways.
So as we pick up the relationship pieces, who do we want to commit to and what will that look like? How will we purposefully pick up those pieces to create a positive path ahead?
Work
Work, in many ways, was redefined throughout the pandemic. With many people working online from home, work culture changed dramatically. How will you use these changes to recreate work in ways that are positive moving forward? How will you redefine yourself as an employee or employer? What will take priority?
Recreation
I believe that many of us will reconsider what we define as healthy recreation as the pandemic subsides. Many of us probably realized that we were mired in recreation paths that were not necessarily positive or enjoyable. We also probably realized that we truly loved and missed some of the recreation we could not participate in, and we can't wait to engage in those endeavors again. As we pick up pandemic pieces, it's time to reconsider what we define as positive, enriching, enjoyable recreation, and invest in that endeavor.
Contribution
Picking up the pieces will help us to think about where we contribute our time, energy, and dollars. We will want to reconsider what lifeways really matter to us and what we hope our communities will be like moving ahead. This analysis will inform our contribution in the days ahead.
Picking up the pandemic pieces gives us a chance to redefine who we are and what we want to do. To be intentional about this brings meaning to our lives today and into the future. Onward.