After over a full year from when COVID-19 struck the world and basically made us all stop on our tracks, the first signs of the world trying to go back to "normal" are starting to manifest.
In Florida, where I live, most people, old and young, that have wanted the vaccine have it already, and so I can feel my environment pulling me towards what life used to be Pre-Covid (plus mask of course!).
I will never forget, one of the first days of the pandemic when my 6-year-old Emma asked me to go in the pool with her in the middle of the week. I hesitated initially, a bunch of traditional excuses came to mind (mommy still has to work, I washed my hair yesterday and don't want to do it today, etc, etc) but in the spirit of "lock-down" I said, "SURE! Let's Do it". Right after we jumped in, she hugged me tight and said: "This is the BEST DAY EVER!", and I said, Really, and Why is that?
Her answer will stay with me forever: "I get to have mommy all to myself!"
During the past year we all have gone through a lot, and no matter who you reconnect to after this time of isolation I am sure you are hearing all about the new routines or hobbies your friends embraced to get them through it. Call it cooking, meditation, walking in the outdoors, going for a bike ride, reading or jumping in the pool with your kids in the middle of a workday as I shared in my story, the truth is that many of us admit that the "the Covid normal" had many positives. Somehow, in the midst of tragedy, fear, and for some desperation, we were able to tap into what feels like a more wholesome, authentic and fulfilled life. Ironically, many of us felt we had more, with so much less. So, as I feel the pull towards starting to consider traveling for work again, birthday parties of kids we barely know, dinner with people that are really not in our inner circle of friends, etc I start to feel a bit of sadness about the possibility of having to give up our family "Clue" Nights, our Pajamas weekends or our boating excursions. The truth is our pre-covid life was hectic and didn't allow much time for spontaneity and just family "hang out" time.
As more and more people get vaccinated, we are all going to feel the "train" starting to get speed again, so I've decided to be very conscious and aware about how is it that I and my family will settle in our "new normal". My intention is not to go back to the old habits that didn't serve us well and to replace them with the new ones that filled our hearts during this time. Granted, we are a social family and we can't wait for the time where we can enjoy our friends and loved ones again, but we are committed to creating a balanced mixed between the old and the new normal. It will take discipline, because like with any new year resolution, the tendency is to do it for a bit and then we switch to auto-pilot again.
In my own personal "Post-Covid" Backpack, I'm planning to include: mindfulness meditation, Tennis, card playing with the kids, less business travel and this blog (as I started it during the pandemic)! What are you planning to pack on yours?