Reflections on Life after Lockdown

I miss our family. I miss our friends. I miss our colleagues. I miss traveling, dining out, going to the gym and just being able to “be”. The past two months have been challenging for most people as we’ve had to adjust to our locked-down, isolated state almost overnight in order to stave off the massive spread of COVID-19. As we begin to re-emerge into society, open our economies and move forward, I’ve been reflecting on all the these that I’ve missed, and in doing so, I’ve also begun considering some things that I do not miss. Chief among these things is over scheduling myself and our family to the maximum capacity so that I am constantly feeling overwhelmed. 

• I do not miss having so many appointments on my calendar that I cringe every time I look at it.
• I do not miss having constant meeting and schedule changes to enter into my calendar.
• I do not miss meeting myself coming and going on the freeways in town, flying from one place to another, almost always running behind.
• I do not miss having to leave my house in disarray each morning because I must hurry out the door to get my daughter to school and me to work. 

I ask myself, “How did life get so crazy? Why do I allow myself to become so overbooked? How much of it is necessity and how much is “FOMO” as my daughters call it? (For those of us not in the Gen Z or Millennial generations, this stands for “fear of missing out”.) My husband and I are very social, and I will once again enjoy being able to go out and see people and participate in group activities. I am beginning to realize, however, that a lot of the “necessities” that I schedule for myself and my family are really extras that are nice to have, but that will not kill us to go without or put off until a more convenient time. So, I’ve been brainstorming how to better manage my time once we can return to normalcy, and I’ve come up with a few ideas:

1.      Schedule no more than two appointments per week. This includes doctor, dentist, chiropractor, etc. Urgent situations will need a waiver on this policy, of course.

2.      Set aside at least one day per week with no appointments, no meetings, no social obligations. This will allow for some quiet introspection and much-needed home chores!

3.      Limit social media (and electronics, in general) to specified times during the day.  This is challenging since I use social for both work and personal, but I do find that my mind is sharper and work more productive earlier in the day. During the workday I will only give myself access to social to attend to business requirements. 

4.      Set workday boundaries. As a business owner this is not always possible, but for the most part, when the workday is done, I will take off my “business hat” and focus entirely on my family. 

5.      Live more in the moment.  It sounds cliché, but I have been enjoying the walk with my dogs the past few weeks, whereas before I thought of it as a chore that needed to be done. When my girls come down to give me random hugs during the day, I relish their love and acknowledge how grateful I am to have this time with them – with all of us under one roof again. I have been “taking time to smell the roses”.  I walk around my garden every morning and stop and smell my roses and just admire their beauty. These things make me happy – they fill me up and nourish my soul, and I will continue making time for them daily.

6.      Learn the word “no” and more importantly, how to use it.  I love helping people, love being involved in our community, love having fun with friends and family. In fact, I love doing these things so much that often I neglect myself. I will block at least one hour each day to take care of myself so that I will be better equipped to take care of others. 

I’m looking to the future with anticipation and a lot of longing for life to return to normal, but there are things I will greatly miss about being forced to be home and be still for a bit. By acknowledging these things now, I hope to regain control over my schedule and life so that even after lock-down ends, I can continue focusing on the important things in my life and let some of the other stuff go.