Despite The Unknown
I'm sure this past week was crazy for you too. There has yet to be one conversation that I've had this week that isn't about the coronavirus. What I've noticed in having these conversations with others is that both comfort and fear seem to be the outcome.
For those of you who don't know, NYU, like many schools, decided to end in-person classes and just have classes remotely for the rest of the semester. In addition, NYU closed their housing. You can imagine the chaos posted on social media and the outrage that was shared within group chats. Everything is about social distancing, or questions on how one is to access their belongings in New York and how "this sucks." And it does suck, I'm not going to argue with that at all, but personally I don't want change to hinder my joy. Because in reality, things are constantly changing, and yes, this is a big change for everyone, but perhaps we should find comfort in the fact that we are all adapting to this together. How many changes in your life have you survived? Probably a lot.
Don't get me wrong, I'm really sad about leaving New York and my 2nd year of school ending early. I think more than anything, I've learned that we're heartbroken about losing opportunities. Opportunities to create, to fall in love, to graduate, to say that thing, or do this activity, but after some heavy reflecting I realized that perhaps these aren't lost opportunities; they are simply on hold. What do I mean by that?
Of course in these weird circumstances you're allowed to find new opportunities: read a book, paint a picture, write a poem, etc. But these new opportunities don't need to replace the old ones you had planned. It's just paused right now, and all we can do is have patience and hope. Not saying that you are an expert at waiting and hoping (I definitely am not) but how much of your life have you practiced patience and hope? I think more than you realize. Like think about Christmas as a child.
If you spotted presents under the tree a couple days before Christmas, you knew you could not open the gift until Christmas morning. So you begged your parents and asked for hints wondering what it was, hoping it's the thing you really wanted, and then you'd get bitter when they told you that you just needed to wait. You were sassy for a bit, but then you would start to play with the toys you already own to hold you over until Christmas day. And each day leading up to Christmas, you would see that the gift was still under the tree, untouched and ready to be open. Somehow you make it to Christmas morning and you're able to open up your gift, and though it was hard, waiting to celebrate this day with your loved ones was worth it.
Now it's not a perfect metaphor nor does it have the same stakes, but the plans/ideas you had are like the gifts. Perfectly wrapped, ready to open but for now, stored under a tree. You can play with other toys or draw a new picture for now and Christmas has to come eventually so all we can do is wait. And you waited then, you've waited for a lot of other things, and you can wait now. This too will pass.
And for those of you who are upset about a specific event that could only happen right now such as graduation, wedding, etc., I'm really sorry. That is completely out of your control and you deserve that day. But also remember that not having "fill in the blank" doesn't make anything you've already achieved any less valid. All the memories that you made, your hard-work, the impact you've made on others, won't go unrecognized and won't be forgotten.
My personal theme and practice for the year 2020 was to be grateful, go with the flow, and be present. These are things I'm really bad at so to accomplish this, I've created four prompts to help me in the times where I get anxiety due to not having control over something.
Don't get me wrong, I'm really sad about leaving New York and my 2nd year of school ending early. I think more than anything, I've learned that we're heartbroken about losing opportunities. Opportunities to create, to fall in love, to graduate, to say that thing, or do this activity, but after some heavy reflecting I realized that perhaps these aren't lost opportunities; they are simply on hold. What do I mean by that?
Of course in these weird circumstances you're allowed to find new opportunities: read a book, paint a picture, write a poem, etc. But these new opportunities don't need to replace the old ones you had planned. It's just paused right now, and all we can do is have patience and hope. Not saying that you are an expert at waiting and hoping (I definitely am not) but how much of your life have you practiced patience and hope? I think more than you realize. Like think about Christmas as a child.
If you spotted presents under the tree a couple days before Christmas, you knew you could not open the gift until Christmas morning. So you begged your parents and asked for hints wondering what it was, hoping it's the thing you really wanted, and then you'd get bitter when they told you that you just needed to wait. You were sassy for a bit, but then you would start to play with the toys you already own to hold you over until Christmas day. And each day leading up to Christmas, you would see that the gift was still under the tree, untouched and ready to be open. Somehow you make it to Christmas morning and you're able to open up your gift, and though it was hard, waiting to celebrate this day with your loved ones was worth it.
Now it's not a perfect metaphor nor does it have the same stakes, but the plans/ideas you had are like the gifts. Perfectly wrapped, ready to open but for now, stored under a tree. You can play with other toys or draw a new picture for now and Christmas has to come eventually so all we can do is wait. And you waited then, you've waited for a lot of other things, and you can wait now. This too will pass.
And for those of you who are upset about a specific event that could only happen right now such as graduation, wedding, etc., I'm really sorry. That is completely out of your control and you deserve that day. But also remember that not having "fill in the blank" doesn't make anything you've already achieved any less valid. All the memories that you made, your hard-work, the impact you've made on others, won't go unrecognized and won't be forgotten.
My personal theme and practice for the year 2020 was to be grateful, go with the flow, and be present. These are things I'm really bad at so to accomplish this, I've created four prompts to help me in the times where I get anxiety due to not having control over something.
1. I am excited about...
2. I am grateful that/for...
3. I have learned that...
4. So I let go of...
Today, I am excited about reading The Beautiful and Damned by F. Scott Fitzgerald, a book I've started like 4 times now, but always stopped because I had to do something else. I'm finally going to read it. I am grateful that I was able to come home safely and for living in a time where I can easily keep in contact with my friends, stream movies, take classes, etc. I have learned that I sort of remember how to play Blackbird by the Beatles on the guitar. So I let go of sulking in fear and sadness, at least for this moment.
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