What comes after grieving? A few thoughts about COVID-19
On March 9, I sat with friends at a local Mexican restaurant. We laughed and chatted over chips and apricot margaritas (yes, it’s a thing and they are delicious). Fast forward to March 13. Our school told us they were closing and the world changed drastically from the call to practice social distancing to an executive order to stay at home. Surreal doesn’t even begin to describe what we’re experiencing.
There is a lot to grieve, and unfortunately more to come. Yesterday, I celebrated my birthday in quarantine. My brother’s wedding in Maui is postponed. People have to cancel visits with elderly relatives or new babies, vacations, weddings, birthday parties, work events, and we have no way of knowing when life will return to “normal.” For many of the most vulnerable, it’s about losing income and figuring out how to feed their family. Small businesses already running on tight margins face huge financial losses and an unknown future. When will they be able to open again? How will they pay and take care of their employees? Can they recover when the world re-opens?
I’m going to take a second to mourn. I’m going to feel my feelings. I’m going to watch my mind do its thing. The primitive brain is having a field day with this pandemic. “I told you to stay in the cave, it’s too scary out there.”
But I can’t stay in a place where I’m obsessively grieving, stressing, or living in fear. I can acknowledge ALL the feelings that will bubble up as this continues to unfold while taking action on the things I can control. I’m exploring questions like:
How can I serve others through coaching?
Who do I want to be during and after this crisis?
What do I want this experience to be for my kids?
What kind of structure does my family need?
Where are the helpers at? What kind of positive stories can feed my brain?
What can I be grateful for in the face of this pandemic?
I’m going to explore these questions over the next week and I hope you’ll find nuggets of information and inspiration that are helpful as we navigate these uncharted waters.