I am not very good with change or disruption. You think I would be better as we are a military family, but I like consistency and order in my life. There is nothing like this COVID-19 situation to disrupt the order in all our lives. On top of the drastic changes being made by social isolation and stay at home orders, we are also preparing for Josh's first deployment. This brings tons of unknowns and the COVID-19 situation has compounded the uncertainty. As I have been dealing with frustrations, anger, sadness, and fear about our future, I sometimes stop to look around me and take stock of my present. I have found some surprising blessings which have eased by emotions about the upcoming deployment.
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| Bub tried on Josh's body armor |
1. We have built strong ties to our home and being "ok" hanging out with just each other. Military families are often separated from extended family and now all of us in 'stay at home states' are dealing with this separation. Social distancing has taught my kids to be ok with each other and to rediscover the joys of home life (ie. toys that have been hidden in closets since we moved to OK!). Thank goodness for FaceTime and Zoom to help us stay connected to extended family and friends that we love. For this I am grateful. During deployment, we will need to pull together as a smaller family unit and be "ok" with each other.
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| This new trampoline is the best thing we ever purchased |
2. Josh and I have been enjoying more time together as most of our children's lessons are cancelled. Before COVID-19, we ran our children to three-four lessons a day Mon-Fri. This meant that we had to divide and conquer and rarely ate dinner all at the same time. We only have two lessons left; music lessons conducted through Zoom, and horseback riding lessons outside. So we eat dinner together every night and Josh and I see each other all night when we returns home from work. I am banking up all this time before the deployment.
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| Lots of movie nights and cuddles with dad and Mochi |
3. I have been very concerned about how I will juggle my yoga classes and private sessions when the kids are out of school in the summer. I teach at least 15 hours a week and travel between two different gyms. This usually happens when the kids are in school and they do not realize how long I am gone during the day. At the end of March, Enid Public School District cancelled school for the remainder of the year and instituted an online learning program. We set up an hour by hour schedule rotating between learning time, enrichment activities, outside time, chores, etc. This eased my mind immensely because I am able to plan my few yoga sessions I have left when the kids are doing an activity that does not require my help. The kids have thrived on this schedule. They fight less and they never complain when we change the activity because they know the time frames. They also feel some ownership over the schedule as we planned the hours together. Now I feel confident that I can adapt our schedule for our summer days when we only have one parent at home (and hopefully the world will be back to normal by then!)
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| Home made fabric and elastic masks |
4. Being military kids, my kids are used to disruption and COVID-19 is no exception. We have had many disappointments and losses due to the closing of school and Bear's dance studio. We have all grieved for the loss of opportunities that we were looking forward to. We all take our moments to express our sadness, anger, or frustration, and then we move on. This builds resilience and adaptability. We will need these qualities as we enter into the deployment.
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| Since Spring Break which turned into nine week break, we have completed eight puzzles |
5. COVID-19 has caused us to think of our home as a sanctuary, our sacred place. We work here, play here, and worship here together. Our home is also keeping us safe from the sickness outside our doors. We all need a safe place to land while the world is so uncertain. My sanctuary helps me not to fear. "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." (2 Timothy 1:6-7)
