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This one goes out to the girl curled up next to me and the boy sitting on the storage ottoman. Side note: said ottoman houses all of their random arts and crafts that they deem important to keep. They seem to appreciate that they get to keep whatever they are proud of and that we have a special place to store it… usually for future playing.

They have played hard in just the day they’ve been back here. We have a tent that encompasses probably 50% of our walking space, we’re working on building every Lego set we have, and they decorated their room for a “grand opening” according to the streamers on the door. I think Gizmo is already worn out from the extra excitement since he’s curled up on the other side of Sis. Bubby’s raising his blood pressure by actively interacting with his Marvel Superheroes game on the XBox – the XB – as he likes to call it. We’ll be enjoying some waffles in a bit, and I’m thinking we’re going to have chili for supper. And salad… we need to eat our salad stuffs.

What does any of that matter for you? Oh certainly nothing. But one of my best traits is also one of my worst traits, and it all depends on the moment – I love looking for silver linings. This is helpful in moments like this when I could easily portray an attitude of boredom or frustration which would spill over to my kids… but I’m not. We’re laughing, singing, and making memories – which I covered in my last post.

I’ve got friends though who are dealing with some really unfair components of life amidst all of the Coronavirus pandemic that’s going on. Some have to work, some can’t work… and the good or the bad is determined by factors important to them. Some don’t have help with their kids, some can’t see them until this is over. Some are losing family members and know the standard family support right now can’t happen. Some are days into having a new baby and are wondering how to manuever new parent life in the midst of all of this. Others are trying to handle ‘everyday’ components to their physical health and don’t know how to do it.

In all of these situations, the silver lining can be both helpful and hurtful according to who I’m talking to and the depth of where they are. It’s a learning point as the outside person to try and teach myself where the lane that I’m supposed to stay in is at times. For some, it’s reaching out. For others it’s being silent and letting them be.

We’re a fix-it society. Right now, we are in completely unprecedented waters, though. So my encouragement to you is to try to find new ways to be there for each other in this time because we’re all attempting to cope. Our regular methods might still work, but they also might need a shift occassionally. Be willing to adapt for the sake of those you care about. Don’t self-destruct when an interaction doesn’t go a certain way (that means you, me) just because you thought it would go differently. WE’VE NEVER EXPERIENCED THIS BEFORE.

Anyway, be kind. Be creative about how you are ‘there’ for people. When it’s all said and done we’ll gravitate to those who paid attention to what was going on and personalized their support. It’s going to happen naturally then, so be adaptable in your relationships now.

As for me… I’m going back to my minions! 🙂