Thursday 16th April, and it’s Day 21 of our SA national lockdown; it was supposed to end today but due to the extension, we’ve now got another 14 days to soldier on through. My experience over the last 3 weeks has been great and I do understand that, to a large extent, it’s due to my attitude and the daily mindfulness meditation practice which has helped me to focus on the positive and see the opportunities, instead of worrying about all the potential problems.
I’ve become very aware of how I’ve valued “Busyness” and although I’ve been working every day and am still “busy”, the quality of my days and interactions are different. I’ve managed to be disciplined and make the time every morning to focus on myself (I was looking forward to lying in and sleeping late) but the 30-60 min I spend meditating and writing my journal every morning are just as valuable and satisfying as lying in and sleeping late.
I’ve also managed to connect more meaningfully with others; my husband, my long time friend Mary, my friend Bela and our conversations are different and richer. I’ve made time to focus on our meal preparations, made time to watch movies, made time to sit outside in the sun and read and it feels like I’ve accomplished so much. I find myself being more attentive and listening and not in such a rush to interrupt and get my point across. I’m saying gentle “No’s” when asked to do things that I feel I don’t have the time for and I don’t feel guilty and worry about letting the other person down.
Our focus really does determine our reality and as Charles Dickens wrote in a Tale of Two Cities: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.” – It’s really about our focus and perspective!!!
Our Focus determines our Reality
I was reading a Harvard Business review article today on the topic of being a thoughtful remote co-worker and found the following three questions really interesting:
What are you most grateful for today?
– Less emails and webinar meetings which gave me time to do some creative thinking work
What made you smile today?
– Memes and Video clips sent on What’sApp groups
– Spontaneous dancing with Joe to a Portuguese You Tube music clip
What did I take for granted in the past that now I really appreciate?
– My health and my relationships with significant others
Here’s the link to the Harvard article:
https://hbrascend.org/topics/how-to-be-a-respectful-and-empathetic-remote-coworker-during-the-covid-19-crisis/?utm_source=HBR_LinkedIn&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=HBR_post
To conclude with my own mantra:
I am happy
I am blessed
I am enough
Chat tomorrow and stay well, Eva
16th April 2020
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