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Isolation: How Do We Handle it?
Post-COVID Recovery & COVID-19 | Last Active: Jul 6, 2020 | Replies (302)Comment receiving replies
@helenfrances I definitely believe we have different stages in our lives. My Mom was a master at the transitions - she called them "chapters" and charted her own path to her very last breath, as did her sister, who was also one of her best friends.
Until Covid-19 hit, I would say I thought I was on my own best path, travelling with my husband and friends, spending time volunteering, with family and friends, and pursuing numerous hobbies and pursuits after dealing with a number of health challenges.
But these last few days, I am struggling. Staying at home and away from other people, especially my beloved daughters and grandsons, is so painful right now I can hardly bear it. The matter of not knowing how long we will have to do it, but knowing my lungs and my husband's health put us at high risk, is very frustrating.
So I try to remain connected and productive, make sure we are eating healthy foods, get in some walking every day, and try to be calm and patient. Maybe someday, I can look back and call this the "Covid Chapter" of my life.
I wonder how many others will feel their lives have permanently cahnges after this interlude?
Sue
Replies to "@helenfrances I definitely believe we have different stages in our lives. My Mom was a master..."
In response to Sue, Volunteer Mentor: For some of us, there has been almost no change. We live on acreage, near a very small town. My husband really doesn't like having people visit, so I seldom invite someone to do so, and he hates to go any where. We usually attend monthly meetings of the local fly fishing club, which isn't happening now, but that's the only big difference. Although we're pretty isolated, lots of people walk our road every day as it's sheltered from beach wind. I know more people here than I ever did when we lived in the metro area a couple of hours away. Even though I owned that house for nearly 40 years, I never knew the people who lived across the street, barely knew the people next door. Here, I see people every day who stop to comment on our yard as they walk past, talk about local things. A year ago, I had a 14-yard truckload of topsoil delivered, but they weren't able to dump it where I needed it so it was at the edge of the one-lane gravel road. I was out shoveling dirt in my contractor's wheelbarrow every day to move it. One day my primary doc walked past with her German shepherd...and stopped to help me shovel for a half hour. She often commented on how nice the flowers looked once all the dirt was in place and everything planted. How many places could you live where your doctor would stop and grab a shovel?
An even smaller town near us quickly raised tens of thousands to hand out to individuals who hadn't yet received unemployment or any other sort of aid. (This coastal area relies 100% on tourism and all nightly rentals are shut, so almost everyone is out of work.) When the little town saw how many people were benefitting from individual aid, they announced they were setting up a fund for small businesses. They received, gasp, $400,000 in donations the first day!
I volunteer for our Backpack for Kids program and am well aware of how many people in this little town volunteer money and effort to help others. I believe that we're far more sheltered in this beautiful rural area, that most of the people here are truly generous and always willing to help others. Perhaps the really big changes have been in the heavily populated metropolitan areas.
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@sueinmn I love the idea you shared about life's transitions being like chapters. It's especially good when we realize that we have a way to help write those chapters through our attitudes and our actions!