Well, 2020 has been an interesting experiment so far, hasn’t it?! For just about all of us, I’d say that the year has really not shaped up how we’d thought. I’ve learned some interesting things along the way – some unexpected, others just confirmed what I already knew. Read on to see the five lessons I’ve learned during social distancing in 2020.
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1. moments of negativity are okay. getting stuck there is not.
At the height of the pandemic restrictions, I got upset. Due to losing jobs and contracts, due to not living my active lifestyle, due to multiple trips being cancelled. Things changed so suddenly that I could barely wrap my head around anything.
A few weeks in – once it became clear that this wasn’t ending anytime soon – I felt very negative. I definitely stayed in that place for several days, feeling sorry for myself. Feeling sorry for the income losses, feeling sorry for the trip cancellations (which were both personal and professional), and just feeling sorry in general.
And then eventually, I just had to move forward.
Nothing was going to change anytime soon, so I could either pass the time being negative and angry, or, I could pass the time trying to recognize the bright sides. And if you try to see them, there are “bright sides” to every situation, positive or negative.
Small as they may be, I found happiness in not setting the alarm most mornings. Focusing on personal projects that I never had time for or never made time for in my busier life. Taking walks and breathing fresh air. Finding time for self-care.
This is one of the most important lessons learned during social distancing. With every loss or failure, as tough as it may be in that moment, it is an opportunity to pivot your goals and plans. It is a moment to make a choice, and produce something positive out of a crappy situation.
2. i’m okay alone.
I already knew that I was good at being alone, after all of my solo-travel adventures, but this put me to a new kind of test.
When I’m traveling, even if I’m solo, I’m still interacting with people on buses, on hikes, at tourist sites, at hotels and guesthouses. That wasn’t happening in isolation.
My isolation was true isolation; I was quarantined by myself, with my entire family 2500 miles away. No roommates. No friends for a long stretch. Thankfully a very cute and funny cat to hang out with, but I spent almost all of my time completely alone.
I think it’s important to express that I did have days that I missed the people who I am close to. I did have days where it would have been nice to remember what a hug felt like. But I chose to use my solo time to work on my personal projects, train aerial as much as I could, and make the most of my time.
And I DID focus on those projects I mentioned; I DID find ways to be productive and positive, and I am now beginning to leave quarantine with quite a lot to show for it. Yay!
3. real connections are key.
Though much of my work is currently online, and I’m very thankful for and inspired by others who are online, in-person human connections are key.
It took me all of about two weeks to be completely over all of these “virtual” experiences – virtual travel, virtual hangouts, virtual dance, etc. I am not someone who likes to experience art and travel and friendship from a screen.
Others I know felt differently, and they really appreciated these virtual experiences, but screen-life is just not for me. I want to travel in real life, seeing the sights, smelling the air, feeling the earth under my feet. I don’t want to watch performances online; I want to go through all of the rehearsals and sweat and tears and be a part of that performance myself.
Once restrictions started to lighten up and I was able to begin exploring the outdoors again, my eyes and lungs were so happy. I enjoyed several road trips through the desert. Camped in nature. Once I was able to be in the presence of another human being, or get back to my sport, it was magical. We all need real life, real connection, and virtual experiences just don’t suffice.
4. WE ARE CAPABLE OF GREAT CHANGE IN OUR LIVES.
Of all of the lessons we’ve learned during social distancing, one of the greatest is that we are absolutely capable of great change in our lives. Whether it was invited or not, whether it was wanted or not – we did it.
I think what this shows us is – we are capable of changing the smaller things that used to seem so big.
We can do better at living sustainably.
We can live on less (and this is coming from the most frugal person I know – myself).
We can slow down. Appreciate more. Focus on what is important.
We can do it all. We just have to choose.
5. we are globally united.
For the first time that I’ve ever experienced, the entire globe felt united in solidarity.
The closest thing I’ve experienced was probably 9/11 in the US, when the whole country came together. But I was at an age that I didn’t fully understand or feel the significance.
Now, and probably because of how much I’ve traveled in particular, I am really impressed on how much the world felt as one. Friends of mine across the globe were all checking in with me and with each other. I got to chat with and hear how similar all of the situations were in Australia, Spain, Ireland, Qatar, Canada and Colombia. Everywhere.
Across cultures we all had the same struggles, the same joys, the same frustrations and the same appreciation. That is a really rare thing, and definitely one of the most significant lessons we will have learned during this time of social distancing:
We ARE all united. We ARE all the same. We ARE all connected.
What was your experience during this unprecedented time? What did you learn or take away?
Let me know in the comments below.
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