Some people have never been housebound before…and it shows.
I do not point that out to diminish anyones pain, hopefully, what is missing from their life is only temporary. Nobody needs to justify or qualify why it feels like a dark day. It just is. But two things can be true, I can empathise deeply with peoples loss and at the same time feel the sting of watching others mourn what has been lost to me for so long. Those of us who have been housebound for a while understand their grief and bewilderment that this could be their lives now, so small, so confined, everything tantalising just out of reach. We understand the pain of having hopes dashed and dreams on hold. To have no control, to be lost without the things that define you, like an identity and role reinforced by your work and/or relationships. To realise your self-esteem is built on a house of cards that can easily be blown over. To have lost the normality of a life perpetually in motion as somebody out and about in the world. Empathising does not mean it stings any less that some of us have spent decades trying to adjust to a smaller world, and that even in the sameness of isolation, those with chronic conditions are still experiencing a world-wide event differently.
Many people are still living big lives, even in self isolation. By getting things done, being purposeful, engaged and occupied and keeping their self-esteem afloat by the completion of daily tasks and gaining confidence in their ability to adapt and face their fears.
Anyway, the thing is, I have to run my own pandemic race, so the energiser bunnies who are not pulling their hair out trying to educate or occupy their children while working from home may have their high octane, at home work outs and fun dance routines but I’m giving you ‘Flying Geese’. Fun for all ages for about 60 seconds or odd distraction for about 3 seconds.
