the same goes for spending two hours on a crowded commute. the shine has quickly worn off that stressful timewaster, having been replaced by a morning and afternoon bike ride, which lessens my anxiety, rather than spikes it.
ditto for over-organizing my daughter’s calendar. it turns out boredom is the mother of creativity, and i worry that by over-scheduling our kids, we’re robbing them of the ability to figure out how to meaningfully fill their own time. if the pandemic has taught us anything, it’s the importance of learning to enjoy our own company.
i don’t want to throw the baby out with the bathwater. i’m not ready to give up on personal care, nor do i plan to eschew dinner out once in a while, or the odd trip to the mall. i want to have meaningful face-to-face conversations again, and, after a year of virtual school, i cannot wait for my daughter to regain some of the independence and freedom this pandemic has stolen from her. a workday without interruption is nothing to sneeze at either.
so, while i don’t want to remain in the stasis wrought by covid-19, if you ask me, “do i want to return to normal?” the honest answer is a yes, and a no. i want to maintain the gift of perspective i’ve unwittingly, and at times, reluctantly, unwrapped over these many months. because i’ve learned that much of what i thought mattered were just trappings with no greater value than the bow on the box.