“Making the best of things” is a pandemic-era mantra. Every day, our coping skills are tested by something new, dire or contradictory. This is my usual response to COVID-related changes:
• quickly get my head around the details of each change
• make a plan on how to adjust
• try to cope with the resulting emotional and energetic depletion.
This coping mechanism works fairly well, but its order is problematic because it runs down my cognitive batteries. Then there’s less energy for writing and other daily activities. If I simply forge ahead, acting as if the batteries were holding a charge as they normally would, I set myself up for disappointment and frustration.
Then there’s the notion that the pandemic has given all of us a gift of “extra time.” We’re invited to put that time to good use on things we’ve been putting off, while our lives are in suspension and uncertainty. We could learn new things, finish those languishing projects, reupholster the furniture—make good use of all that time.
When I talk to friends and family on the phone, there’s often an exchange of “doings.” A small voice in my head feels compelled to build myself up and embellish the list, lest I appear to be wasting my “extra” time. Well, there’s this and this and this. Oh, and this and this and this. Sometimes, we talk about how the pandemic has offered opportunities for growth, insight and other good things.
For me, time spent reflecting is time well spent, and it doesn’t require that I accomplish anything. I’m not concerned about how I’ll incorporate any insights I may have gained into the life I resume when things get back to “normal.” On some days—especially in the past few weeks—reflecting is the only thing I accomplish.
As the COVID pandemic drags on, keeping any sort of momentum is challenging. In the early days, I noticed that I was better able to manage my days if I factored in that inevitable cognitive battery drain. It’s the same idea as building a household budget that works when I take 10-15% off the top to account for overly optimistic thinking.
Optimism is an American trait. We’re proud of our positive thinking and ingenuity, and what it does for us. “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade,” and all that. But these days, forward momentum needs to be tempered with a little TLC for my poor tired brain. I might be doing things differently, but I don’t have to love it 24-7.
One thing that I remembered and wrote down back in April was a great little insight on that relentless positivity. The author cautioned not to have lofty expectations for the “extra” time we all have on our hands: if you don’t get out the other side of COVID as a new and improved self, that’s OK. Just focus on getting through it. The punchline, or payoff pitch, was this pithy observation: “It’s a pandemic, not an artist’s residency.”
On that note, a tip of the cap to all artists, especially those in the performing arts. I send you much love and sustenance wherever and whenever you find it. You are cherished, supported and deeply missed!
