A few short weeks ago the urgency of the COVID19 Pandemic became apparent to my family. I remember the day clearly, it was Thursday afternoon when this all became a reality. The next day would have been the last Friday before the March break for the kids and I was faced with the decision to keep them home or send them for one last day with their friends for what would have been a school dance. That was the day things changed.
I kept them home.
Here we are days later, what seems like months. Reflecting on how this whole virus scare has changed our lives possibly forever. I don’t often talk about my home life in detail but I think it is important to note that our oldest son is immunocompromised. The slightest cold could mean a rush to the hospital, and lengthy recovery, something we have lived with for years.
Germs have not always been our friend and in some ways turned us into germophobes over the course of time. This is what confirmed my decision to keep the kids home that Friday before the Coronavirus was serious business.
The kids and I have been in complete lockdown since that day, 20 days ago. My husband followed days later and has only left the house for grocery pick up when absolutely needed. We have now adapted a sort of routine. While very loose, we manage to get homework done, crafting, games and always have time to talk.
Life is simpler now.
Our current home life has taken on a simpler groove, seems we are still getting the every day essentials done and we have become more grounded in the meantime. My husband is home, he hasn’t been home in years and it was something to get used to but the extra hands helps a great deal.
There is more time now.
Dinners are somehow more elaborate, we are baking and cooking around the clock. Dieting is no longer a word in this household because I no longer care about the extra weight. Haven’t worn jeans in almost a month!
Kids are talking to us more, and the extra time *where did it come from* has allowed us to become more fulfilled with the basics of the world around us -the walls we look at daily. Our kids have come up with all kinds of game ideas and watch television with us daily. Something that rarely happened before all of this.
Bedtime and wakeup looks so different then it did before. We don’t even look at the clock and it doesn’t matter really whether we sleep until noon or even nap late in the day because we don’t have to be anywhere. Vanity has dissipated, we no longer have a sense of style and on some days combing hair is optional because why not? We are happy in our bubble and our smiles show through.
I know a time will come when life will return back to our chaos that once was, and I’m not saying I don’t miss it. I’m just holding onto these moments with all that I can because perhaps we can learn something from all of this madness.
All of these things changed in a few short days, I think that says that we needed this reset.
Maybe the pandemic scare is just the thing we all needed to make us realize that life isn’t about the great moments, it’s about the tiny ones. Make us understand that true family values are built not bought and that our society needed a break to understand that oversharing online doesn’t mean we actually share with those who truly matter.
This pandemic has changed our family for the moment – perhaps for the better.
