I wrote this for an interview with a distributor in our industry for their blog. Seemed like time to acknowledge a few nice things in the midst of all the worry & uncertainty. They ARE still happening!
Seven good things that have happened during quarantine:
1. People unleashing their creativity onto the world. People who “used to”, people who “never have”, people who “always wanted to”, and people who already were. Everyone with more time, sitting down and using some of it to express themselves in new ways with new thoughts, new perspectives, and a greater sense of freedom to experiment.
2. People lounging. Without the guilt usually involved. Binge watching, sleeping late, sleeping in tents, sleeping on sofas, sleeping in the middle of the day, staying up late, making comfort food, drinking cocktails at home, taking unnecessary baths, sitting in hammocks, sitting on porches, watching birds, playing games, having picnics, making bonfires, listening to old music.
3. People not being compulsive consumers. I have always embraced the notion that limitations foster creativity. I like challenging myself to cook things with only ingredients I already have in the house. I like moving around the furniture and artwork I already own. I like making a new outfit with clothes already in my closet. I like painting from poorly composed, fuzzy snapshots. Sometimes I forget I like all these things, but not now!
4. People enjoying nature. Everyone, everywhere knows what I mean. It’s as if people forgot how wonderful it is to be outside, and they finally put down devices and remote controls, and stepped out into the world they had abandoned. I know not everyone has been so lucky, but we have experienced, without a doubt, the most spectacular spring that Louisiana has ever seen. Usually spring is not even considered a real season here, and this year it has lasted well into May! Unbelievable. I have asked old people, like my Dad, if he can ever remember a spring in New Orleans this good. He said “never”.
5. People writing. We have sent and received more personal letters during this quarantine than probably in the last five years combined. Real letters that arrive in a mailbox. Another thing we forgot could be so exciting.
6. People learning to be alone. This is a complicated one. Society has become a bit neurotic about needing to “be a part of”, “be included in”, join, and above all make sure they share every single experience they have with whoever is willing to look at a post. For a lot of people this quarantine period has erased the pressure to worry about being so social, and it feels like a collective sigh of relief. I’m not saying that a community is not important and that we won’t be glad to get together again, but the ability to quietly enjoy spending time with yourself is still an incredibly important and rewarding skill to be honed. A lot of artists are already ahead of the game with this one!
7. Kids doing awesome kid things. And parents agreeing to them. Here are a few from our house: dyeing hair (warning- we now have one pink and one blue bathtub), cutting off dyed hair, making pinatas, learning to flip crepes, having food fights, learning Morse code (warning- a lot of beeping noises instead of words), learning to play chess, switching rooms- twice, abandoning rooms and moving into tents, star-gazing, writing poems, writing songs, writing letters, writing menus, staging dinners, being chefs, being waitresses, planting seeds, helping stock art supplies, trying new art supplies, making a thousand paintings & drawings, canoeing, fishing, dog-training, learning horrible internet dance moves, learning how to use a vacuum, and a washing machine, and a dryer, and a dishwasher. Don’t get me wrong- we’ve all been pills and had mood swings, and needed to take a break from each other. But still- pretty awesome.