Streets are empty.
Playgrounds are eerily quiet.
Music venues are silent.
Sport fields are barren.
Going out in public is a risky adventure.

Birds chirp.
Deer roam.
Alarm clocks are unset.
Dogs enjoy company all day.
Neighbors help neighbors.

Hitting a collective pause button has never happened in our lifetimes. It was inconceivable.

So much was lost when we hit the pause button. Big games, weddings, birthday parties, family vacations, grand openings, anniversary celebrations, graduations, baby showers and countless other special occasions.

When external activities disappear from our calendars, what’s left? What are the side-effects of this crisis?

• Long phone calls talking about nothing & everything.
• Sunsets glowing over families at a dinner table filled with odds & ends.​
• Forgetting what day of the week it is.
• Discovering new hobbies.
• Finding solace in music.
• Rekindling old pastimes.
• Neighborhood walks.
• Growing food.
• Supporting a struggling small business with an order.
• Watching old TV shows.
• Stargazing.

In the midst of a pandemic that has disrupted our daily lives, this is where the magic resides.

We can choose to focus on the moments that matter.

We can embrace the surprising side-effects of our lives on hold. We can graciously accept that aspects of our former lives will undergo a transformation beyond our control. We can linger in the unknowing of when our new normal might begin. This pandemic will pass.  We will all have new beginnings. There is no going back.

Embrace the magic because we’ll never have this time again.