8 things to Do During Social Distancing

As the country moves into our first week of official quarantine season, I figured a little unsolicited advice on how to make the best of the next few weeks couldn’t hurt. And whether you are home meeting your children for the first time because of their early spring break (jk kinda), away from dancing down Main Street, setting up your living room work stations or continuing to head into work like me, business, as usual, *rolls eyes*, here’s a few tips on what we can all do to make this time a little bit easier.

*Declutter/Clean*- Here’s the thing: we all have the pile of junk sitting in the corner that we planned to get to eventually. And girl eventually has come and gone, a million times over. And now that small pile has turned into a large mountain of disappointment and despair. According to my good sis Google, “Decluttering creates a sense of confidence and self-efficacy. Doing this successfully can help you feel confident about your decision-making skills”. To put it nicely, junk weighs you down in more ways than one. Also, your floors miss you. Clean up your room, your cars, your bags, and purses too. Let’s clean it up America. And watch the weight lift from your shoulders and your purse.

*Stick to a Schedule* - This tip is mostly for my friends working from home or who’s little monsters are who have started their early spring breaks. I don’t have kids and don’t claim to be an expert but I can imagine keeping a schedule for yourself and your little ones couldn’t hurt. We are taking ourselves and our children out of a structure and placing ourselves in a very confusing bubble where lots of information is causing moment to moment change. We can’t always control the news, or the updates, or the future, or our President, but we can control how we manage the time we do have. Use it wisely, efficiently and responsibly. The #Rona shouldn’t disrupt your mind, so stick to a schedule, and keep it.

*Get Some Sleep* - I mean, just before this I said to keep a schedule, and I meant it. But, I’m no fool. If you have more time in your day then you normally would, REST. There is very little a good night’s sleep, or afternoon nap can’t fix. Recharge your body because I heard the #Rona can’t get you when your knocked out under the covers. Let’s get these Zzz yall, you deserve it!

*Laugh* - I am a firm believer in laughter. Loud, wheezing, eye-watering laughter. The kind that pulls you straight from your chair to the ground in pain. The type of belly laughs that come from deep within yourself, and echo like thunder. The kind of laughter that only comes with being around your friends, doing absolutely nothing at all. The kind of laughter that comes from watching that show for the 100th time. The kind that happens organically… you can’t force that type of laughter, and THAT is exactly what we need right now. I pride myself of trying to bring humor to even the worse situations, and I hope that no matter what I’m going through, God will never remove my sense of humor. Laughter is the thing that keeps my head above water most days, and my heart open and willing to do more. Laughing is free. Laughing is contagious in all the right ways. And laughing can truly add a silver lining to the worst of days. Not because the situation we find ourselves in is humorous, because quite frankly it's not. But laugh because no one should steal your joy. Simba said it best, “I laugh in the face of danger” …

*Create* If there was ONE thing, I would rather be doing right now more than anything in this world right at this moment is dancing. To remove dancing from a dancer’s heart is like pulling air right from our lungs. As artist, musicians, singers, actors, creatives, etc, I know being pulled away from your craft is hard. But think of the beauty you can be creating right in this moment. They say the best art comes from suffering and pain. But maybe the best art comes from being open and vulnerable to the circumstances and situations around us. We owe it to ourselves to continue to breathe life into our passions. So, write it down (speaking directly to myself). Write how this time has made you feel. Write a short story, hell write a novel… but write. Make music… open your mouths and sing because your voice could be the medicine we needed. Dance, as often as you can. Learn the other side of the street for that new Magic Happen choreography so no one has to put a mullion switches in. Try a new Tic Tok dance challenge or improvise in your room. You don’t have to be perfect, but you do need to remember that one virus can’t stop the show inside ourselves. Our lights shouldn’t dim just because our stages have. Continue to do what you love, over and over again…

*Remain Thankful*- I feel like more than anything, the idea of being thankful has been lost in all of this. I completely understand how frustration would be the easiest and most common emotion to fall into right now, but thankfulness is priceless. There are people who are still working every single day, to provide the rest of the world with the best ounce of humanity we can still muster up so be freaking thankful about it. Remember that the small changes that seem like huge inconveniences to you, were likely sent down by people way higher up than Susan at the grocery store. So, put your own straw in your iced latte Abigail, and be happy Starbucks still was able to get ANY milk in these hard times. And for the love of pixie dust, stop telling cast members how upset you are about not being able to go into the parks. A basic sense of thankfulness remembers how blessed you are to wake up today. Thankfulness reminds you to only take what you need at the store and offer what they don’t to someone else. Being thankful is please and thank you, when you want to be mad or upset. Thankfulness reminds you that life is still so precious, even when its inconvenient. There is still so much to be thankful for, and absolutely no virus can convince me otherwise.

*Check-In* - As much as so many things on this list refer to keeping yourself sane in this crazy time, I cannot help but stress the importance of checking in with other people. Emotions are high right now, and with each trip to the toilet, many don’t know what they may see on the other side. Check-in with your family and friends. Send a message to see how they are. Tell a joke or short story just to make sure their hearts are ok. Often, we push one thing to the forefront of our minds and forget we are all just human, with a ton of life just happening. The world is in complete panic mode, and I’ve found myself and my family dealing with a host of things that had zero to do with the Coronavirus. An unexpected stroke, followed by not one but two deaths in my family, in the course of a few weeks, reminded me quickly that sometimes the loudest thing isn’t always the thing that can get you. How much of that stress would be released off our shoulders if someone just asked, “Hey, how are you doing?”. We owe it to ourselves to still be good people. With all this free time, check-in, reach out, and just be there. It’s the little things that can really mean the most in a time like this… self-distancing shouldn’t mean you block the world away. Love people from afar. Be there for them, pray for them, care about them, talk to them, check in with them... NOT because of a worldwide pandemic, but because you should still care about folks that you claim to care about. Simple as that.

*Breathe* - I’m not going to lie; all of this is a tad bit overwhelming. I have found myself teetering between a state of panic and disregard repeatedly. I have tried to make sense of it all, while also making it seem as though it doesn’t really bother me while living somewhere right in the middle. I’ve found myself worried about things I hardly ever worry about. I worry about family, and how easily they can be taken from you. I worry about my friends, and how they are, what they are doing and how I can help. I worry more than I ever have before… about work, and life, and the news, and tomorrow… and I worry and worry until I stop.

And then I breathe. I take a moment, or two, and I breathe.

We are all strong and special and each one of us in this world is so much bigger than this virus. I would be lying if I said I had all the answers, but I know that as a human race, we have seen worse. That is not to scare you, but to remind you that we are a people built to last. So, breathe. Close your eyes and breathe. We cannot afford to crumble under this thing, because we are better than this.

2020 is shaping up to be one hell of a year, but I cannot wait until we look back at this exact moment and say how we made it through. So, I will wash my hands and then wash them again. I will clean up and stick to a schedule. I’ll get some rest, remember my smile and tell a joke or two… I will dance, and write, and be thankful for each day I have… I will love on those around me, praying for them and sending them all the positive vibes I can muster up, and hope they do the same for me and then I will continue to breathe. When I want to get upset, when I don’t understand, when it all feels like too much, I will simply breathe. We are going to be alright…

Forever washing my hands,

KB