When you reach the end of the day, do you sit as I do and wonder where the time went? Are you honest when you ask yourself about what you accomplished during those hours? And even further, do you judge the day for its value beyond any financial gain or loss? Or do you expand your thinking beyond the obvious?

Living this past year during the COVID pandemic forced us to be more mindful of whom we connected to, what situations we chose to be involved in, and how we wanted to live during our isolation. Our safety depended on the choices we made.

But what happened to me during that time of insolation surprised me. Instead of feeling fearful, I felt more powerful than ever before. Time and again, I was reminded that life is nothing more or less than a chain of choices, and I had the power to create each of my days. It was up to me to keep myself healthy.
Even more, walking about my housing community with my dog, I felt a greater awareness of everything around me. Perhaps it was due to the idea that with so many people getting sick and dying, I’d better pay attention to my surroundings as if it would be the last time I could observe it. But, no matter the reason, I began to appreciate my life more.

Instead of “road running,” I stayed at home and spent my time working less and relaxing more, even taking afternoon naps. As a result, I began to value my neighbors and friends more and was happy to know that they were safe and well. As time continued, I started to live in a cocoon within my housing development, and I was content.

When I went out to the grocery store, I wore my mask, of course, and seeing others wearing them, too, caused me to become keenly aware of our oneness as we moved about with our covered faces. I saw small children in masks and I wondered what they’d remember about this time during their formative years where they had missed seeing our individual faces now blocked by various face coverings. I thought it might be frightening for them, but that could be because I didn’t like the facelessness myself. I prefer to speak to someone I can see and identify within them some aspect of myself. Maybe they felt the same way.

Now that the pandemic is beginning to release its hold on us and we are on the road to recovery, I find that not much has changed from where we were before the pandemic. There is less camaraderie of us all being masked and dealing with the same circumstance of maintaining our health. We’re back to being the same impatient society we were before, not demonstrating our good luck and blessings as we did during the pandemic. Yet, I know better.

Once something as significant as the pandemic occurs, we can never go back to the exact way things were. So there is hope that we will become more mindful of our significant connection to each other and the importance of treating each other in a kindly way—and I am optimistic.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Joan S. Peck is an editor and author of short stories, spiritual books, and a contributing author in two of the books in the Life Choices book series. She serves as Editor-in-Chief for “Chic Compass” magazine, an international publication based in Las Vegas.

“I write mystery books you can’t put down.” Her latest novel is Angels Out of the Dark, about human trafficking. She is the author of the Death Card Mystery Series, with books five and six releasing in 2021. “To me, the fun of reading mystery books is to become so intrigued with the story it becomes impossible to put the book down. The fun of writing them is to put you in that same situation.”

She can be reached at:
joanpeck39@gmail.com
www.deathcardseries.com
www.joanspeck.com

This article originally appeared in the Summer 2021 issue of CHOICES Magazine