Tips for returning to BETTER? (Forget “normal!”)
One of my dearest friends and mentors recently said, “What if instead of talking about when we ‘return to normal’ we start talking about how we can ‘return to better?’”
To me, it feels as though the world simultaneously sped up and slowed down. It feels as though, all at once, everything changed. On one hand, everything skidded to a screeching halt, and on the other hand, the work of doing and arranging and figuring things out kicked into high gear. Sometimes there’s an underlying sadness, other times a stillness.
I welcome some days with enthusiasm and excitement. Other days, like today, I just kind of want to put a sign on my forehead that says “out of order” and disengage. (I’m digging deep to type out these words because I feel they are important.) Whether you’ve caught a second wind or you just feel like you want to sit down and not get back up for a while, there’s an opportunity here and I don’t want us to miss it.
If we are willing to, we can intentionally create our new normal. We can “return to better.”
How? I’m still in the thick of figuring it out, but I’m starting with these 3 questions:
1. What joys have I found in this season that I want to continue? I’ve identified two things so far. 1) Family walks in our neighborhood. The opportunity was there all along, but we just discovered how much we need this time. Little hands in big hands, conversations unfolding slowly and curiously, and no need to hurry. 2) Mid-day breaks to breath and pray. It started as a stress-management strategy, but this rhythm has become so life-giving I don’t want to stop.
What about you? Maybe you’ve picked up some life-giving habits or rhythms you’d like to continue. Maybe you found an extra measure of gratitude for things you didn’t realized were taken for granted. What joys will you cary forward?
2. What do I need to leave behind? The stay-at-home-order forced some outside commitments to halt. While those commitments were right in past seasons, they became a “have to” instead of a “get to” sometime ago. I’m not going to add them back to my schedule. I sent some emails and made some calls to let the right people know. It wasn’t that hard, and it felt so freeing.
What about you? Maybe you’re surprised to feel relieved by canceled plans or obligations. Maybe the suspended extracurriculars produced freedom you didn’t know you craved. If so, why add them back just because you can? Maybe the change has been financial - a tightening of the budget you plan to continue; or maybe it’s about your health - a new found focus toward fitness and wellness.
3. What do I need to start or restart? Again, two things come to mind. Something to start: I’ve realized I deeply miss teaching a Bible study. I haven’t taught one in years, but it’s time. (I’m not letting the grass grow under my feet on this one - the new Bible study started last week!) As for restarting? I desperately need to restart my exercise habit. I fell off the wagon hard in this department and I’ve learned at-home workouts just aren’t my favorite.
What about you? What’s new that you want to add in your new normal? Or what have you lost that you’d like to find a restart button for?
I’d love to hear from you! Share a few of your answers in the comments below!
Let’s be the people who “return to better!”