Being adaptable in the year of COVID - by Trudy Gregson

For what are you most grateful as you look back over the year and why? I’m grateful that none of my immediate or extended family has contracted COVID, and to have had this extra time at home with my college-age sons who otherwise would have not lived at home. I’m grateful for the technology that has allowed me to see my clients from home and to stay in touch with friends and loved ones, and I am immensely grateful to all the doctors, nurses, and hospital staff, and all the essential frontline workers. 

 

The pandemic revealed to me how little I actually need. My world became smaller in many ways – working from home, no vacations, and in the winter, virtually no in-person get-togethers. While I miss it all very much, it turns out I can be pretty content “hunkering down” and amusing myself with home activities.  And yet in other ways, my world became larger – seeing far-flung family and friends more than I would have if not for zoom. Discovering hidden gems like new parks, hikes, a dog beach, and new towns that weren’t actually hidden, just unexplored because there was always so much else to do. 

 

I learned how adaptable I can be – I had never seen clients online before and had believed it would be inferior to in-person. In fact, it has been far better than expected and I am now open to how online will expand my ability to work with clients post-pandemic when there are obstacles to clients coming to an office.  

 

I have never been so closely attuned to the day-to-day changes in nature as I have during the pandemic. In Spring, noticing the daily changes to the blooming magnolia tree right outside my front door – the colors, the blossoming flowers as they gradually opened, and their scent up close. Noticing more than ever the changing angle of the sun as the seasons change, and seeking that last bit of afternoon sun on my front step on a cool day to catch some Vitamin D after a day spent inside.  

 

What is the most important thing that the year of Covid 19 has taught you? We can do hard things (borrowed from Glennon Doyle). People are incredibly adaptable, resilient, and creative, and I’ve been inspired by and grateful for so many people during this time. 

Art and connection during the pandemic - by Barbra Danin

For what are you most grateful as you look back over the year and why? I'm grateful that I don't have to face many of the challenges that others have had to deal with:  I have food security, I'm able to work, I live in a home I enjoy spending time in, I don't have to educate my child, and I have my health. 

 

What did you take for granted this year? I'm trying not to take anything for granted these days and hope that I'll continue to feel gratitude and awe well after the pandemic passes. 

 

What did this reveal to you about yourself and your presence in the world? I realize how fragile my existence is, and how important it is to savor every moment.  I have learned to prioritize my relationships with friends and family in ways that weren't as clear before the lockdown. 

 

What new hobby or old pastime did you take up or revive during the months of 

lockdown? For a long time, I have yearned to spend more time making art. Several years ago I showed a friend my beloved collection of antique dishes, and the next day they all fell out of the cupboard.  I saved the pieces in order to make a mosaic and found a cement birdbath.  I worked on it on and off for over 10 years and committed to finishing it when I moved to Philadelphia.  Still unsatisfied with the base, I became inspired to do a mosaic on that as well, and for the past 2 months I've been working on it whenever I have free time. 

 

Was there an unexpected joy that you experienced during this time? Connecting with friends and relatives on a more regular basis  (I even reconnected with a friend I knew growing up in the Philippines as a young child!).

 

What is the most important thing that the year of Covid 19 has taught you? 

I hope to never take the basic things in life for granted......the importance to me of friends, family, travel, being a part of the world, making each day count!! 

Slowing down during the year of COVID - by Carolyn Abele

For what are you most grateful as you look back over the year and why? I am sure this will change as I have time and space to reflect.  I am grateful for the time I have had with my family.  Like real time.  Before COVID,  I was waking up at 4:15am to get to my gym class then rushing to a really intense job running a school and then rushing back to pick up my kids.  My husband traveled constantly.  There was only quality time on the weekends, between errands.  I am beyond thankful for the slower pace, having my husband home and doing random fun things together.  I prided myself on how I managed it all, got it all done and didn’t need anyone’s help.  My life during COVID has been new, frustrating, exciting, boring, refreshing, adventurous – and a wake up call. 

 

What did you take for granted this year?  I took for granted all the things I thought I “should” have – easy access to food, ability to do what I want when I want to do it, paper products, education for my kids, and access to my family.  Losing these things initially felt like a loss of my freedom and peace of mind.  I took those things as given because I thought I was entitled to them.  

 

What did this reveal to you about yourself and your presence in the world?  This really made me realize how privileged I am to not have to worry about “everyday things”.  Suddenly getting food felt like foraging for crumbs, and my kids education felt like a privilege and I feared that their futures were doomed.  I know now that things can slow down, and everything doesn’t have to be the way it was, or the way I want it to be. And it is OK.  Kids are resilient, and I have to model that. 

 

What new hobby or old pastime did you take up or revive during the months of lockdown? Play.  Leisure.  I walked a lot.  I used to think walking was boring and I needed to be running and sweating.  The walks were great with my family, without anyone or with my dog (who is terrible at walking). 

 

Was there an unexpected joy that you experienced during this time? I honestly thought I was going to go crazy at home.  I like to be out and about and doing things.  I was able to slow down and learn that I didn’t have to have a schedule everyday of things to do and see.  

 

What is the most important thing that the year of Covid 19 has taught you? Uhh!  SO hard!  That I won’t win a prize for being the “I can do it all Mom”.  Be present, take it all in, and make time for the things I think are more important. 

Unexpected joys during 2020 - by Brittiney George

For what are you most grateful as you look back over the year and why? Laughter, space, and real connection. The things that were the shoulds held so much less weight. It felt like an opportunity to really question and choose where and what you put your energy into. 

What did you take for granted this year? How hard this has been for others that don't have the resources and support available to them.   

What did this reveal to you about yourself and your presence in the world? How strong joy and hope live within my body and that when things feel like they are falling apart, it is the beacon that I can share with the world. I can be present with pain because I respect it and know the other side of it so viscerally. 

What new hobby or old pastime did you take up or revive during the months of lockdown? Puzzling and wonder/wander walking-not to burn calories or to get somewhere but for the pure joy of noticing the world around me. 

Was there an unexpected joy that you experienced during this time? Looking up.  The wonders of trees, leaves, the sound of birds, meteors, and stars.  I found out my house is between the big dipper and Orion’s belt. How have I lived here for 10 years and never noticed that? 

What is the most important thing that the year of Covid 19 has taught you? When you go barreling through life you miss so many magical moments and that we have one job in this world, to take care of the hearts of those we are with. We don't have to get it right, but we do have to take care. 

 

Self-Compassion and gratitude during 2020 - by Elizabeth Campbell

For what are you most grateful as you look back over the year and why? The health of my family and the ability to work from home/continue working....because of my wonderful mother-in-law providing childcare. 

 

What did you take for granted this year?  Health, housing, food security. 

 

What did this reveal to you about yourself and your presence in the world? When overwhelmed, I am not connected with the values that I want to be connected to.  

 

What new hobby or old pastime did you take up or revive during the months of lockdown? I walked and ran outside more. 

 

Was there an unexpected joy that you experienced during this time? Slowing down! 

 

What is the most important thing that the year of Covid 19 has taught you? Gratitude for the small things, the importance of family time, and compassion for myself and everyone else. We are all in it together! 

 

Resiliency through Poetry - by Michael Bridges

One of the things that helped me not just cope, but also make meaning and provide hope during this difficult year is poetry. When I was a very young man, I read Theodore Roethke’s poem “The Waking” and the following lines have provided a mantra and guidance throughout my life: I wake to sleep, and take my waking slow. I learn by going where I have to go. 

Well before the difficult days of COVID, I’ve made sure that I wake slowly, say a silent hallelujah to my first cup of coffee, and then settle in to read poets as diverse as Rumi, Roethke, Rilke, Mary Oliver and others. And then I allow myself to wait until the muse moves me to write what I’ve come to call my “Morning Prayers.” While not great works of art, these poetic ramblings have managed to get me through my days with a sense of purpose and humor. I’ve picked three poems from the past year to share that I hope, at the very least, bring a smile and will resonate with your own journey.    

Mumbling to Myself Becomes a Prayer by Michael Bridges (5/7/2020)

Oh God,

Oh, Great Spirit,

Oh Anyone?

Perhaps just me.

Once again, I’m lost.

So, help me

Find my way back

To this moment.

To all that is holy

In the everyday

In the commonplace 

The sunlight streaming

Through the windows 

The sound of someone

Hammering in the distance

Building something

I’ll never see.

Finally, 

Help me be quiet enough

To hear the song

My heart is singing.

Most of all,

Help me take

Each breath

With delight.

A Kind of Half Ass Carpe diem by Michael Bridges (8/29/2020)

This is where I am 
This is where I be 
Giving just enough 
Of a damn, 
To stay in the moment 
Watching my mind 
Start to flee. 
 
I remain grateful for 
Long dark dreams 
Where I meet strangers 
That read Flannery O’Conner. 
And gray, lush mornings 
Portending thunder storms 
On the way. 
 
The luxury of the moment 
And time to read poetry. 
Akin to the need 
Not to need 
To hurry towards 
The end of my days. 
 
Falling in love 
With the desire 
To seize the moment 
While letting go 
Of any desire 
To grasp it. 
   

Stumbling New Year’s Prayer 

by Michael Bridges (1/1/2021)

 

Let me be small 

      Let me be kind 

              Let me let go 

                     Remembering always 

                     This holy moment to find. 

  

Let me be up 

      Let me be down 

            Let me be empty 

                   Let me be found. 

  

Let me be high 

       Let me be low 

             Let me be less & less 

                    Always, on the go. 

  

Let me finally, 

       Find my way 

                From there 

                        To back here 

  

Again & again & again 

Amen. 

A year of living with and learning from COVID 19 - by Heather Hill

Do you remember your life a year ago?  What you were doing/planning/dreaming about?  This February, I’m intensely aware that we are approaching the one year anniversary of living with COVID 19.  It’s hard to believe all that has taken place.  2020 and part of 2021 seems like it’s been suspended in time or that time itself has found a wrinkle that we are living.  If someone had told me we would be living this long in various stages of lockdown a year ago, I would have climbed right out of my skin.  Instead, it has been a slow wayward journey of shedding expectations, slowing down, living with uncertainty, cherishing those we love, enjoying nature, getting outdoors, being grateful for what we have, and learning to live with less.  Inspired by a Facebook Post, of all things, I invited the practitioners of the Resiliency Center to reflect on their journey through the year in this newsletter.  Here are the questions for reflection which we invite the reader to reflect on as well: 

 

Questions to consider: 

1. For what are you most grateful as you look back over the year and why? 

2. What did you take for granted this year?   

3. What did this reveal to you about yourself and your presence in the world?   

4. What new hobby or old pastime did you take up or revive during this time? 

5. Was there an unexpected joy that you experienced during this time?  

6. What is the most important thing that the year of Covid 19 has taught you?   

 

We close this newsletter with some of our favorite shows and books that have accompanied us along the way.  Almost every phone call or zoom gathering I have had with friends and family has ended with sharing our favorite stories either in book or digital form.  These stories have made us laugh, inspired us or temporarily transported us away from the angst and stress of living through COVID times.   

 

My Reflections

For what are you most grateful as you look back over the year and why? I’m grateful for my family, friends and health but that is not unusual except that I feel it more palpably and daily.  This year, I’ve also been grateful for my work that allows me to connect with others in a meaningful way and on a deeply human level, to bear witness to the strength and resiliency of the human spirit and to laugh in the midst of struggle and pain.   

 

What did you take for granted this year? This year I learned how much I always take for granted:  opportunities and a sense of safety afforded to me by white privilege, health, food security, choices for education, employment, space- both in my own home and in my neighborhood.   

 

What did this reveal to you about yourself and your presence in the world? This has revealed to me that I have been sleepwalking in some ways.  The struggle and challenges of 2020 have awakened within me an urgency about social, racial, and environmental justice.  This year has revealed to me that my busy-ness can and does rob me of precious energy and clarity needed to devote to working for causes I believe in and spending more time with people I love.  The time to rest, reflect can bring forth a return to the things that truly matter.       

   

What new hobby or old pastime did you take up or revive during this time? I found Yoga with Adrienne on Youtube!  I have never been a regular practitioner of yoga because I’d much rather run, spin or swim...but Adrienne’s delightful personality and less than one hour classes won me over.  I also reconnected with a textile artist friend who has guided me on a journey called “The Art of Weaving a Life” by Susan Barrett Merrill.  I find weaving to be soothing and meditative...and less frustrating to me than knitting! 

   

Was there an unexpected joy that you experienced during this time? One day we dragged our firepit to the end of the driveway and invited our neighbors, who we used to hold at a respectful distance, to join us.  Thus began an unlikely friendship of two families from different political parties during an election year.  We watch over each other, take care of our neighbors who can’t get to the grocery store or shovel their walks, and coordinate a weekly dinner exchange.  Also the birds coming to our new birdfeeder along with the time to slow down and observe them always gives me joy.  It just never gets old seeing a male bright red cardinal in the winter landscape.     

 

What is the most important thing that the year of Covid 19 has taught you? I have always been a restless soul and felt the constant need to get out or see lots of friends.  I’ve resisted quieter pastimes and the rest that is so restorative.  The year of COVID 19 taught me I could adapt and not just survive, but thrive on simple pleasures like baking bread, having patience, finding connection and loving the people right in your own backyard.  I am integrating more of my values into my space and my family’s life.  I learned that small acts of kindness are the surest route to a sense of connection and belonging.