As we continue to ride the highs and lows of all things COVID for what will minimally be another month, we have asked ourselves all kinds of questions. Are my retirement funds safe? Will the work I have put into my business be enough to see me to the other side of this pandemic? Have I invested in the things and people who matter most?
To be sure, these are important questions at any time in our lives, AND, it seems much more timely and significant to ask these questions now. As we consider our literal and financial investments, I would also like to invite you to consider what might be considered a more metaphorical approach to the question as well.
Over the last few weeks, I have had an opportunity to think about all of the things that I frequently say that I would do, if I had more time. I would do a deep cleaning of my house, if I had more time. I would better organize all of the files on my laptop. I would clean out the storage area attached to my condo. Well, I must confess, not only are none of those things done (we have been in some level of quarantine for three weeks), they still have not even made it to my top five list for the upcoming weeks either!
On the flipside though, I now talk to my mom almost everyday, I have started studying Spanish with my youngest daughter, I have written more blogs and newsletters (even to you) than I have felt the liberty to write in a while, and I have actually clocked MORE zoom hours catching up and staying connected with friends than I have in work related meetings! All of this got me to thinking: while it is important for me to attend to how L!VE will survive, post COVID-19, it is also important for me to “take stock” of what has authentically garnered my attention in a season when it feels like I actually have more time.
Can we get curious together about what we still don’t want to do, now that we have the time, as well as what we are actually spending our time doing, now that we have the time. I suspect that paying attention to the things and people in our lives that are receiving our time and attention may inform us about what it is we are wired to do, who we are actually wired to be, and under what circumstances we can genuinely thrive.
I have always enjoyed cooking for other people. I love the hospitality that the process evokes. I love the joy the experience brings. I love the creativity that it inspires. Unfortunately, though the cafe has daily food options, it is rare that I get to actually participate in the aspects of the business that would afford me the opportunity to share with my friends and customers in this way. But now, in this downtime, I can slow down long enough to curate the menu and prepare it my way, and I could not be more excited about the opportunity!
So I will be personally curating and making the new spring/summer menu offerings for the next few weeks! Prepare to be tantalized by our spring/summer menu options, and to be one of the first to try them! Each week I will offer a different combo for you to try. Place your online order (act fast--we will only offer 30 lunches per day!), select the day (Thursday, Friday, or Saturday) and timeframe between 11a-2p (to preserve freshness) for pick up (a touchless transaction), then go home, and enjoy! Lunches are $14 for members and $15 for guests (become a member and SAVE!).
So maybe you are taking a nap that you never took before, but you also feel more rested than you ever have. Maybe now that you work from home and feel less micromanaged you are more productive than you have ever been. Perhaps you have discovered that home schooling has actually allowed you to center the needs of your children in ways that you have always wanted to, but never felt that you could.
As we #preparetolive, post COVID, these are different, though very relevant “investments” that we will want to “take stock of” to ensure that as we eventually move out of this current way of being, that we will leave behind what is depleting our energy (to the extent that we are able to do so), and take with us that which we have discovered as goodness, richness, and worthiness, even in the midst of a pandemic. This is not an ask for you to be better. This is not a new demand for self improvement. This is a moment to consider what is that need not be. This is a moment to consider what already is, that can be maximized more intentionally. Take this time to pay attention to yourself, and #preparetolive in ways that amplify the more authentic version of you. Selah.