Wow! What a month! How are you holding up? Are you safe and healthy?
For me, March started with just regular busyness- tutoring, class work, and doctors’ appointments. The first weekend was spent in Iowa and was filled with 11 year old birthday fun. That next week was when the world seemed to turn upside down.
In the midst of all the shutting down of restaurants and deciding I should just leave my gloves on while I grocery shopped, my kitchen was gutted. New floor and cabinets were installed as there were runs on toilet paper. I simply did not like shopping by the following Sunday, but I went to the paint store to buy beautiful dark blue paint for the walls. By the time the countertop guy came to measure, I was unsure I even wanted him in my house.
Now, I have an almost finished kitchen. It is beautiful as far as it goes. I covered the dishwasher and sink, which are sitting in my dining room, with a tablecloth. Every other day, I wash my dishes in the bathroom sink. I tell myself that I am grateful for hot water, any sink, and more dishes than I need. My countertop will be ready this week, but I am not
letting workmen into my home, not for a while at least.
I am trying to be philosophical about all this. I try to find the beauty in the moment. I have mastered tutoring online and hosting movie nights on Zoom with my friends. My online business class is kicking my butt and making me rethink all my plans. I have had days where I just felt like a crab but they have been only a few. I have grown in more ways than I could have imagined a few weeks ago. My kitchen feels like a metaphor of my life, beautiful but unfinished.
Today, I watched a heron fly over my house in Chicago. It was probably heading to the river just a few blocks away. It gave me hope for some reason. The idea that life continues while we mutter and worry is so reassuring.
My daughter-in-law, the marvelous Betsy, told me that the word she thinks that best describes me is confident. It’s a façade. It all is a trick I learned as a child listening to my parents’ King and I record. So I whistle my happy tune. May I be as brave as I make believe I am.
Make believe you're brave And the trick will take you far. You may be as brave As you make believe you are
Be brave, my friend. We will make it through this change. May it open your heart in surprising ways.
All my love,
Lee-Ann
P.S. Could you help me by taking or sharing my on teaching mindfulness to children? I’m wondering how best to help parents teach their kiddos mindfulness techniques.
P.P.S Here is a gift for you. It is my video that teaches one of my favorite mindfulness techniques: The Shark Fin.
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