To live in a pandemic means to live with the constant hum of a threat. Somedays the hum might be so quiet it will lull you into thinking things are “normal” and other moments it will roar back reminding you that while you might be done with it, it isn’t done with us. 11/

To live in a pandemic means to have fewer moments of auto pilot where our brain can properly rest while we still go about our day. 12/

To live in a pandemic means facing uncertainty every day. When will I be able to see my family? Will I be fired? Will my children learn? Do I have enough money for gas? Will I be able to support my team? Is this sniffle just allergies or something more? 13/

These questions happen so fast that we don’t even realize our brain exploring the world of “what ifs". Like an app that is running on our phone, it slowly drains our batteries and we find ourselves laying awake at 2 am wondering why we can’t sleep or remember what day it was. 14/

But now we are 100 days in. We have found new habits, new patterns, new norms. This sense of familiarity sooths us into thinking we should “be back to normal” and we are confused when the fatigue faces us again. When we react more often than respond. 15/

We ask “Everyone else has it figured out, what is wrong with me?” “When will I snap out of it?”

So here is your friendly reminder again - we are living in a pandemic.

You aren’t alone. You never were. And you never will be.
16/

We need to be ok that some moments are going to feel low when just a moment before felt high. I think I navigated 11 different emotions today alone. My favorite thing about emotions? They are temporary. Always. They don’t always feel that way in the moment, but they are. 17/

And so, I invite you to be deeply compassionate with yourself and others. It is ok that you haven’t developed a sour dough starter or built a side hustle or worked out every day and it’s ok if you did. We all need to recharge in ways that serve us. Just be sure to do so.
18/

To my fellow humans - ride the waves when they come, rest when they are calm and keep looking to the horizon.
19/19

#COVID19 #leadership #resilience