Tag Archives: stayhome

The Finish Line is in Sight!!!

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Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. ~Galatians 6:9

I feel weary; I feel very weary, but the one thing I can say is that the end is in sight, and I have survived! I can’t say I will be sprinting, or even jogging, across the finish line…more like crawling. But the finish line is in view, and I have made it! Don’t get me wrong, I wanted to quit at Week 1, and again at Week 3, and then again every week since then, but I have made it to the end!

Distance learning has been one of the hardest parenting challenges I have faced. Navigating distance learning with four kids, three who have unique learning needs, while trying to work from home has been extremely difficult. At least once a week I would ask my husband what he thought would happen if we just quit doing it. However, we kept putting one foot in front of the other, and now I can almost reach out and touch the finish line.

When I completed my half marathon earlier this month, it was a similar feeling. I don’t remember a lot about the last three miles because I was so exhausted that my brain didn’t seem to be working. It was 69% humidity when I started, and well into the 80s when I finished; the combination completely zapped my energy. However, my body seemed to be on autopilot, so I pushed through until the end. By the time I reached the finish line, my brain was foggy and my entire body hurt. I wish I could say I sprinted across the finish line, but that was not the case. I reached the finish line feeling like I had nothing left to give. I didn’t achieve the time goal I had set for myself and didn’t finish as strong as I had hoped, but I finished. A goal that I had for my entire adult life was achieved, and with that came a huge sense of accomplishment.

As I finished the half marathon and as we finish distance learning, I can’t say that I have “run the race to win” because in both cases, I have reached the finish line feeling like I have nothing left to give and like I barely made it. However, what I can say, is that I persevered and finished. I was tired. I was weary. And I wanted to quit so many times. But there is something to be said for perseverance.

Distance learning has been hard. Running my first half marathon was hard. Quarantine and social distancing have been hard. But in the midst of it, we have persevered, and there is something to be said for that. When we wanted to quit, we didn’t. We kept putting one foot in front of the other, and we survived. We are stronger than we realize, and we have now reached the finish line. Summer break is here, which means a break from juggling working from home and the kids’ school work. It means a chance to regroup and refocus and to plan fun, creative activities with the kids. The finish line is in sight, and even though, in many cases, it feels like we are crawling to the finish line, we have persevered, and if nothing else, we have finished.

Reopening: Cautiously Hopeful

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  • To them, the sky is the limit.

With the announcement this week that many places are beginning Phase 1 of reopening, there is a sense of relief that has begun to fill households. The kids are excitedly making plans of when we can visit our loved ones or take a trip, even just a day trip. They excitedly discuss all the possibilities. To them, the sky is the limit.

For adults, many are skeptical. Can I safely go to the places that are reopening? Will I risk getting infected or infecting my loved ones? When will it be safe to stop social distancing? When will the stores and restaurants I love resume “business as normal?” There continue to be more questions than answers.

In spite of it all, there is a level of excitement in the air, a sense of relief, that we can slowly begin resuming life as normal. I long for the day I can sit and enjoy our favorite family-friendly restaurant or plan a date night to somewhere other than our kitchen and living room. In addition, my “travel bug” is stirring again. I am pretty sure my heart flipped when talk of opening the National Parks began.

There is a sense that the weight of the last few months may finally be lifting. My head tells me it may not, that this may all be “too good to be true,” but my heart leaps for joy at the possibility of my favorite places reopening and the ability to return to normalcy. How reopening will truly unfold is anyone’s guess. However, for now, I choose to be cautiously hopeful–hoping that things will slowly return to normal, but aware that at any moment stay-at-home orders may once again be implemented.

Perhaps my biggest wish is that I can go to the store and find flour, toilet paper, and meat shelves full once again. As I embrace the relief and hopefulness I now feel, I recognize that it will take time for life to fully return to normal. I also know that we will never be the same.

This season of life has changed us. It has made us appreciate our families that we have been unable to see. It has made us appreciate things we previously took for granted, like toilet paper and full shelves at the store, or being able to engage in social activities, or shop at stores we love. We have seen how quickly the economy can change or how jobs we thought were secure can suddenly vanish.

Many of the challenges and lessons of this season have been difficult to embrace, and they may not be over yet. However, for now, I choose to be cautiously hopeful that we will slowly begin picking up the pieces of the life we knew, and slowly rebuild a better future.

Weariness Comes Knocking

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As week five of quarantine draws to a close, only one word adequately describes my current state of being: weariness. Weary that I can’t go back to life as normal. Weary that I am having to balance my work and my kids school work.

Social distancing is beginning to take its toll. I can’t say I typically have a full social calendar, often opting for low-key family weekends rather than entertaining or joining large social gatherings, but I am starting to crave socialization. I miss seeing my siblings, spending time with my friends, and enjoying the warm hellos of coworkers.

The demand placed on parents across the country to become instant home school parents is also beginning to take its toll. Yes, teachers are creating the lessons, which at first appearances would make it seem easier, but now, unlike traditional home school, I am having to keep up with twenty-five different teachers’ expectations between my four kids. Each teacher has different requirements, different platforms they are using, and different expectations. Navigating these demands is anything but easy.

In my brain, I imagined that the third week of home school would get easier, that we would have settled into a manageable routine. However, some new challenge always seems to present itself. This week, we discovered that we had accidentally missed some important assignments last week. That definitely causes a set-back because we spent the beginning of the week playing catch-up. Going into this week, I thought it would be smooth-sailing, but that wasn’t our experience. This week was hard.

Fatigue. Weariness. I am bracing for social-distancing for the long-haul, but longing for life to return to normal. I bought a new hair dryer that doesn’t work well, but returning it means another trip to a store that is limiting the number of people allowed in. My recent online order arrived damaged, but exchanging it means going to the post office and being in close proximity to others. Is it better to engage in these activities or just make due? This seems to be the million dollar question.

I don’t want to expose my kids to the virus. I don’t want to get sick and be unable to help my kids or do my work. In addition, if my husband gets sick, he will have to use most of his time-off or take unpaid leave. These questions, precautions, worries, and fears are on so many minds. Not wanting to expose ourselves or our loved ones to the virus, but longing to get back into society and to our normal lives.

The lack of answers feels ominous. When will stores begin to reopen? How bad will the unemployment rate be when this is done? And how many stores will have to permanently close their doors?

Each of us has questions that swirl in the back of our minds. Maybe we don’t take time to listen to those thoughts each day, but they are there, adding little by little to the weariness and stress. I know life will return to normal at some point, but how soon is anyone’s guess.

In the meantime, it is important to find little moments of joy in each day. Watch the sunrise. Have morning coffee virtually with a friend. Take the chance to enjoy lunch with your kids…since they’re home from school anyways. Engage in a hobby or discover a new one. Inhale the fresh air while watching the sun sink in the distance.

We will get through this. It will pass. Life may look very different on the other side. The unknowns feel extremely daunting…but we will survive and will come out stronger. There are lessons we will learn in this season that we will cherish forever. History is unfolding before our very eyes and memories are being made. On the other side of this, we will view life through a new, fresh lens.

Embrace the present, plodding along, taking one step at a time, because when we don’t know what to do, we just need to keep putting one foot in front of the other.

Above all else, we must not lose hope. Hope will carry us through, even on the hardest days, and hope will ensure that tomorrow comes, and it allows us anticipate a brighter future.