Look ahead to what you’ll wish you’d done

Press the play button to listen to the audio version of this article.

Hi Delightful Dish-ers. I hope you’re doing ok. Writing that—“ok”—looks so trite in the midst of a global pandemic, but I mean it. I think “ok” is pretty good right now. At least, it is if we’re giving ourselves grace. Which we should be. Boatloads of it.

In our little corner of the world, we’re trying to change what we look for. Mr. Rogers’ advice to “look for the helpers?” It’s like that.

What a weird, scary, time-warp-y moment we are in. Every single person—all of ‘em—will be affected by this situation in one way or another. The virus will change our world—that’s for sure. And while we can’t know yet how it will change things on a global scale, we can make the best of our little corners, right?

Keeping our vision focused on the doomsday news won’t help the situation.

In our little corner of the world, we’re trying to change what we look for. Mr. Rogers’ advice to “look for the helpers?” It’s like that. Because we can’t change what we see—chaos, bad news, empty streets, and terrible realities for many families and businesses. Those things are happening. They’re real. And we don’t want to stick our heads in the sand while we have a roof over our heads and plenty of food. But keeping our vision focused on the doomsday news won’t help the situation right in front of us.  

[T]hese four little shifts in what we look for have brought some joy into our messy, cabin fever-y house…

So we’re keeping an eye on all the bad news, but looking deliberately for what’s good, helpful, graceful, and (dare I say it?) even fun in these times.

It’s taken some discussion and planning between me and my husband (and cooperation from our boys, ages 3 and 5), but these four little shifts in what we look for have brought some joy into our messy, cabin fever-y house…joy that we hope will outlive this d*** virus. It’s our family’s itty-bitty piece of resistance. Maybe some of it will be helpful to you too?

Look for the gifts already around you.

1. Look for what actually matters to your family. Yep, we see our house is a mess. Nope, it doesn’t matter. Yep, we see a zillion homeschooling resources. Nope, we don’t have to use them, if they’re overwhelming.  Amid the social media madness suggesting what we “should” be doing in this crazy time, we’re looking for what actually matters to us. Then doing that.
2. Look for the gifts already around you. We’d never noticed the huge field less than a mile from our house. But, with playgrounds closed and social distancing in full swing, that field is heaven for our rambunctious boys. Turns out we have a neighbor who is a sourdough master. So we’re learning. Our yard is suddenly filled with flowers and ladybugs and turtles—delight for young kids. (Also pollen, but let’s not even get started on that mess.) These things have always been here. I’m so glad we looked a little harder.
3. Look for small ways to help. We’re supporting local businesses we love. We’re writing letters to people we love. We’re getting groceries for neighbors. We’re trying to be just a teeny bit kinder than we need to be. These opportunities have been there for us to see all along. Now we’re looking for them on purpose.
4. Look ahead to what you’ll wish you’d done during this time. Covid19 is going to be in the national memory forever. It’s going to be in history books. But most importantly, it’s going to be in your family story forever. What do you want to look back on as your experience of this time? Taking that perspective has really changed our habits and given us permission to focus on what really matters.

Look for ways to help.

Delightful Dish-ers, it’s hard times. There is no denying it. It’s probably going to get even harder. But if you’re a Delightful Dish fan, you know a good thing when you see it. So let’s really look—for the Good Things, I mean. And hold each other up until this thing is over.

Stay well.

Thank you to author Susanna Klingenberg, Furman University graduate, for this honest, optimistic article. Delightful Dishes very much appreciates Susanna sharing insights into her family’s story during these trying times. We look forward to her continued contribution.