This pandemic has been painful for all of us. Certainly some of us much more than others; they say we’re all in the same boat, but it would be more accurate to say we’re all in the same storm. Many of us are armed with very different boats to deal with the same tumultuous sea. That being said, there is real trauma for all of us in this time — every single one of us.
And…there are also very real spaces we have grown during this pandemic. Places we’ve grown that we never would have had the opportunity to otherwise. It’s been such a wild and strange thing, a pain and a challenge, a stressor and an opportunity. For many of us, our problem solving has stretched and grown in profound ways. If we can solve a problem during COVID, we can solve it any time. In that context — what a gift! We have obliterated normal. The ‘normal’ we come back to will be a new place, with new skills and new tools. It’s informed every aspect of our lives.
This doesn’t negate or even diminish the trauma and horror of this time. It is traumatic and horrifying. But there is also an and, as we’ve been learning, and sometimes the only way to make it through such a stressful time is to remember the and, to lean into the and, to embrace the and.
What tools and insight has this experience given you that will help you for years to come? Where is your and?
