We Are Okay

Have you ever seen the movie Groundhog Day? It just so happens that movie is one of my most favorites. Bill Murray’s terribly negative outlook on life made me fall in love with his character, in a way that gave me a dark insight into my own flawed personality. He was so charmingly negative that i couldn’t help but laugh, as i related to his (I’ve watch the movie more times than I’d like to admit).

So, it was during one these late night, bing watching marathons that’s become the trademark of this quarantine, when i realized we are living in a modern day Groundhog Day.

Day in and day out, filled with the mind numbing mundanity that could really take a tole on ones mental health. Lack of socialization (other then, of course with the ever irrational 3 or 13 year old), the endless meal perp, the countless loads of laundry...and on top of it all, playing referee in the repeated arguments, worrying if there’s a job at the end of this ordeal to go back to, and of-course, the concern for the health of parents and other loved ones.

Perhaps the biggest tole that this quarantine has taken on us all is the lack of uncertainty for what’s to come- coupled with the fact that days and hours seem to creep by ever so slowly— an absolute drain on our mental energy and stability.

So it’s all if this that’s made me think about the mom who is stuck home with her little kids that have no sense of understanding why they can’t go to the park. Or the one who looks on as others “Marie Kondo” their homes and she wonders why she hasn’t yet lined up her own spices in alphabetical order. Or the family that’s engulfed in fear for the health of a loved one who is immunosuppresed.

The truth is, being socially isolated in our homes can be a paralyzing experience for so many amongst us. First time preparing a Passover Seder or making the ever dreaded charoset? Devastated that beloved parents will have a Seder alone? Raising a child with a disability and suddenly there a complete lack of support?

Alone.

Isolated.

Fearful.

To know that our non color-coordinated sock drawer, or the fact that we did not volunteer to deliver meals to the home bound elderly, does not make us any less positive members of society.

To know that if time in quarantine made us realize that we are truly part of a well oiled machine and cannot go at it alone. To know that the coffee with girl friends wasn’t just coffee but an hour of the best therapy that money could buy.

So when you get out of bed and brush your teeth but stay in your pjs all day, celebrate that small victory and know that you are okay. You’ve got this-in a time that’s terribly difficult and uncertain.

You are doing better than okay and we are here for you ❣️