Who is up to what these days? I volunteer with the Hear Me App where I talk to folks from all over the world who need someone to talk to. And everyone is struggling, myself included. I’ve spent the first several weeks of the quarantine in a slump – no energy, no motivation, not eating or sleeping well, obsessively checking the news. Since, I’ve worked on bringing back the structure, the routine, drumming up exercise, making sure I sleep enough and trying (trying!) to stop eating biscuits and chocolate. I am far from “normal” but I am making progress. Baby steps… 

These are sad, uncertain, worrying times. It is normal to feel down, anxious and depressed. I bet no one, no one is feeling ok. We are stuck with ourselves amplifying everything we might have been running from before. Life choices, decisions, behaviours, beliefs – everything is under review. Everything is being questioned. 

We have to focus on what we can control. We can not control the virus, the news or the death stats. We can control how healthy and safe we and our loved ones are, we can keep our body, mind and spirit in shape and we can use this time as a practice to work on becoming aware of and burning through “our stuff”, like Ram Dass teaches in his Dharmic Fire talk. As Buddhists see it, suffering is a fodder for growth if you don’t try to run away from suffering. Out of mud lotus flower springs.

Connect, support, help, give, be kind, be creative, be mindful. Above all, give yourself a break, practice self-compassion and self-care. Baby steps. Tiny progress. We are all in this together. Stay safe, fellow nomads.