Celebrating in the midst of Covid: Holding space for both joy and loss

Experiencing joy in the midst of a crisis is the very definition of a paradox. But that's exactly what it means to celebrate accomplishments right now. A paradox that is both joyous and marked with loss.

Almost overnight our lives got that much more complicated. Accessing work, food, in-person human contact and simple entertainment got turned upside down and without warning.

And yet we are now approaching a season of celebration for so many graduates around the world. I reflect to my own graduation five years ago and can't help but be thankful for the time I had with friends, family and classmates celebrating that once-in-a-lifetime accomplishment.

I also know as a researcher that we have entered headstrong into a time of scarcity. And its during times of scarcity - rather it’s a real unmet physical need, cognitive work overload or just the scarcity of trying to navigate life around Covid19 - it’s all too easy and even natural to turn inward. We enter this protective state where others are often unconsciously viewed as a threat. We easily blame the system for failing us. We lament all the things we could have had. I know I have caught myself many times in this scarcity thinking.

It's during this time we often notice all the shortcomings of our institutions and systems that can't respond fast enough to meet our needs and keep us trapped into scarcity. The system is indeed riddled with problems that are hard to ignore. In many cases our institutions have failed to meet us at the individual level today.

But I am coming to this realization that as individuals we can't wait for the system to reboot in order to take care of each other at a local individual level. The system complications are real. The complexity never ending. The debates of how to reopen endless.

We are now left with a choice. We must choose to celebrate each other and our accomplishments locally - at the individual level. We must do so safely and within the confines of local laws.

We must look outward and ensure we don't miss all the joy that is right in our own neighborhoods.

This weekend I had the opportunity to reach out locally and celebrate the accomplishments of two amazing women scholars who have worked tirelessly over the past years researching and contributing to the field of organizational psychology. They have paved new streams of research on what it means to experience meaningful work amid small businesses and automation.

It would have been easy to miss this milestone. We could blame the system for failing us or as emerging female leaders could pave a new way. A way that looks outward to celebrate other's accomplishment. A way that connects deeply into local communities. A way that understands that grief and joy are part of the shared human experience. We don't have to choose one, we can co-exist with both.

And while we missed the many loved ones that could not physically be present, we chose to be present safely with those we could.

I share this story today with the hopes of spreading more examples of local kindness and eventually rebooting the system differently and more humanely when it fully returns.

The choice is ours to act locally, responsibly and collectively.

What act of joy can you extend in your local communities today?