It’s now been a month since we have been sheltering in place in the Bay Area and it’s been a constant process of learning, growing and changing.
One of the things I have noticed over the last month of shelter in place is how little I have purchased or spent. As traveling, going out and other non-essential activities have been cancelled or postponed from my calendar, so have I noticed how much we thought we needed is really non essential. Gas, tolls and public transportation expenses are gone for me, as well as coffees, expensive trips to Target, happy hours, and social activities.
Instead, they are replaced with working from home, Zoom happy hours with friends, calls to my parents, walks in the sunshine, or in the rain. Buying a few groceries. Dancing, doing yoga, connecting with business sisters, cleaning out my house, and painting.
Then, there have been those things that ARE essential which we may have taken for granted before -- the ability to get basic supplies, groceries, and medical care for our families, our health and safety, the ability to go for a walk in nature, and for many moms at home with their kids, 15 minutes of peace. And also, hope. Resilience, faith, and hope have become essential right now, just as much as food, water, breath, movement, connection, love and purpose. Social media and technology helped us to meet our basic need of connection. And just as much, taking space from social media and the news, and developing our own sense of hope and faith are even more essential.
The planet has thanked us for our break -- LA magically became one of the cities with the cleanest air, the Himalayas are visible from India for the first time in 30 years, wildlife are returning to Yosemite, endangered sea turtles have been hatching. We thought we couldn’t have this big of an effect on the planet but we can. When the will is there, we can change the state of the environment DRASTICALLY in solely a number of weeks.
And as much as I DO enjoy leaving the house (I am an extrovert, after all), I’m also realizing how many things I thought were essential, both in my budget and my calendar, are in fact not essential at all.
What about that miserable hour and a half commute, was that essential? We certainly thought so before COVID, and so did our employers. Now, as business continues from home, that is being re-thought. What about coffees out, lunches, expensive dinners with friends? We may have thought it was the best way to connect, but now we are finding that we can still do that at home.
I for one am happy to have the break in the norm from the consumerism, overspending, overscheduling, and losing focus of our real purpose that can happen so easily while getting distracted by shiny objects (whether they fill our budgets or our calendars.)
As I start to think about my life at home over the past month, I am noticing how it has given me the chance to clear my slate, rethink the way I’m living and choose again. I hope I keep some of that spaciousness when we get to whatever stage in the world we next call normal.
And in the meantime, use this time to rethink what is really essential for you. And HINT: it may be different from you thought.