This quarantine has been extremely difficult for me.
I know, I know…you’ve heard that from EVERYONE. Everything is different. We don’t get to see friends. We don’t get to go to public places, and we really won’t have a normal summer. Nothing that is happening right now is normal. Our lives changed so quickly, and we didn’t have any time to adjust.
Some days I feel totally okay and fine. On those days, I accept that this is happening and there isn’t anything I can do. All I can do is go with the flow and make the most of what I have.
On these days, I also realize that I am so lucky to have everything I need, and that there is so much I can do. Netflix always has new shows and movies. We have enough supplies to cook and bake. We have everything I need to work out in our basement gym. And my parents have loosened up on bedtime, screen time…I really can’t complain about those changes!
But still, sometimes I wake up and feel so empty and sad as I realize that it’s just another day when:
I can’t see my friends.
I can’t workout with my team.
I can’t have normal summer with my friends.
And that’s all because of a virus that I can’t do anything about. I get consumed by these thoughts and wonder what I’m even spending my life doing.
Watching TV all day.
Doing schoolwork in my bedroom, not a classroom.
Talking to friends over FaceTime all day instead of getting to see them in real life.
And waiting for my mom to finish work so we can go for a ride and see the world again.
So even though I have everything I NEED, there is NOTHING to do. It feels like there is nothing to look forward to.
And what’s worse? Some days, everything feels pointless. I have no motivation to workout (even though that’s something I absolutely love to do). I can’t go on walks with friends because being near other people is dangerous (and who would have thought this would EVER happen). There is so much I want to write about, but when I get on my computer, I can’t even pick a subject to write about (because this whole situation is INSANE).
I told my mom the other day that I feel like I’m wasting my life away because I am not doing anything productive. She told me that would be a good blog post and here is exactly why.
It might feel like we are wasting our lives away, one day at the time. It’s easy to let ourselves be consumed by thoughts like “I could be doing hard workouts now and building strength and endurance to be better later,” or “I could be eating healthy, organizing and cleaning up my life a bit.” And that just feels bad.
But that is not the way to think about it.
We are living through a pandemic. So even though it might feel like we are wasting our lives by relaxing and indulging in some extra self-care, our time is not wasted. We are enjoying our lives with our families. And that’s really important.
If life right now doesn’t look like what you want it to, change that. And if you can’t change your life, change your outlook.
I will admit that there are tons of days where I’m sad and I can’t even think about the bright side. Just when I start to think about it, all of my emotions try to take over and tell me that those happy times together aren’t coming back for a long time. But then I stop and realize that it’s not true.
You might not be able to see your friends in person right now, but you can call them. You can do those workouts that you miss on Zoom. You can call ALL your friends on Zoom and all talk together! You can catch up with old friends and rekindle old relationships. You can spend more time loving your family and yourself. And life will eventually become normal again.
This pandemic will not last forever. Life will continue.
When? We don’t know, but what we do know is that if you look at this situation in a different way, you will feel different. Yes, it’s easy to think of all the bad things right now. But if you sit down and try, you can think of more good things. It might take a little more thought, but hey, you need something to do anyway, right? Just take a few minutes and I promise, you CAN think of more good things.
So when you’re bored, and you can’t think of ANYTHING to do, remember that there is a bright side. And in those moments, I suggest that you make take some time and find it! Before bed, when you wake up, or maybe even at both of those moments, remind yourself of all the good things to come and all the good things you can do right now.
With all the sadness and dark times in the world right now, take a look at the good things. Look for the good times, the laughs, and everything you have right now.
Who knows…you might just develop a whole new outlook on quarantine.
With love,
Danielle
