On my trips to the market to replenish supplies for the 6 people and 2 dogs living under our roof, I undoubtedly bump into someone I know who asks how our family is holding up. And, each time I’m asked, I think about how truly blessed we are.

Yes… We have two high schoolers who are engaged with online lessons from 8am-2pm each day, and we have a college student who has moved home from out-of-state to complete her semester virtually, and we have a fully employed daughter who has taken over our home office and is working remotely. (Let’s not forget the husband who is bouncing between home and office.) And the second dog… She’s a 10 week old puppy. (Dog humans: Need I say more?) The house rarely sees this much activity, and – I’ll have to admit – we’re not always the kindest and most thoughtful crew, but we are weathering this storm together.

I’ve been giving a lot of thought to the impact that the COVID-19 virus is having on the universe, especially as it relates to our interactions with one another and everything that has been outright cancelled or postponed in order to flatten the curve. It seems to me that the “suckiness” factor of the cancellation falls into one of three categories: (1) inconvenient, (2) depressing, and (3) life-altering. I’m here to share my personal opinion that, if you haven’t been impacted in a life-altering way, then please… take a seat.

The grid below is certainly different for each and every one of us, but this is my take. Was I bummed that I won’t be the March Madness winner in my family this year? You bet. And was I really looking forward to our family cruise (no joke) departing from Rome (yes, the one in Italy) in June? I sure was. But, if we continue to be blessed with health, there will indeed be future opportunities to travel and I will – yet again – pick the perfect brackets based solely on how much I enjoy the state (thank you, lovely people of Utah) or saying the name of the college (Gonzaga, Gonzaga, Gonzaga).

How are you looking at our current situation? Have you taken up residence in the bitter barn or are you counting your lucky stars and doing your part to keep your community safe?

Is it likely that you will come out on the other side of this pandemic with health and hope? Then that, indeed, should be enough.

Perspective. May we all have it or be open to finding it.

@bethechangebeth