Wear a Mask or Trust God? Navigating Covid-19 as a Christian

Last week I discovered that I was in close proximity to someone who had tested positive for Covid-19.  We were together indoors for hours (legally). As soon as I found out I was tested and the results were negative, and I'm thankfully, fine. 

I was incredibly relieved not just for my own sake of course, but for the sake of my family, as I would likely give the virus to them if I had it. I can give you three reasons why my result was a negative one. We were both wearing masks, we were practicing social distancing (though we were together, we avoided being closer than 2 meters apart whenever possible), and of course, the sovereignty of God.

It's come to my attention that some Christians think they must choose between trusting God with their lives and taking cautionary, responsible, neighbour-loving steps to protect themselves and others. Friends, it's both.

I trust Jesus with my life and my soul. And I will honour and obey him by washing my hands, obeying social distancing orders, staying in my bubble, wearing a mask, and laying down my personal freedom for the good of others. 

If we follow Christ we'll live a life of nuance - we will fear no evil (Psalm 23:4) and we will lay down our lives for our friends (John 15:13). 

Family Photos (from Autumn 2020)

This past Autumn we were so blessed to have my friend Camille take our photos. I'm so thankful to have these place markers for our history, to remember what it looked like having kids ages 7, 9, and 10 and how we all appeared the year of 2020. Every year I feel like we stay more or less the same, until I look at our annual family photos and see that so much indeed has happened and we are utterly changed. 

We love this season so much. Our kids are at an incredible stage where they're independent enough to go to the park together without a parent and have become quite helpful around the house, yet still require a tuck in each night and play make believe. It's the best of both worlds and if we could, we'd freeze time. The truth is, every year it gets better as a parent, so I know better than to think it's all down hill from here. We're starting to enjoy the same activities with our kids and the same books and movies. It's wonderful and awe-inspiring to think we're raising our dearest friends. 

Like many of you, 2020 tested our limits as a family. We faced disappointments, felt boredom and loneliness and fear, made due with no child care and online learning, and got even closer than usual in our two-bedroom condo where we spent all of our days, safe at home. 

We attended Covid funerals and cancelled best laid plans for vacations and the holidays. The family in these photos is not perfect and has failed one another numerous times, but gosh we love each other. And we left 2020 stronger together. 

Thank you Camille for these shots!

Wistful Thoughts on Fall & Apple Picking

Covid or not, you'll still find us paying to pick our own fruit in sweaters that are too hot to wear by noon, haha!

It's Fall and these constants are so refreshing. So much has changed. Insert heavy sigh here. The way our kids go to school and we go to work. The way we go to church and meet with friends. The way we travel, or don't. The way we unwind, or don't. It's exhausting reminiscing about the freedoms we enjoyed last Autumn compared to this one. Last year when we frolicked in and out of cafes for pumpkin spiced drinks unmasked. When I flew to Scotland with a friend and had a week kids-free (still pinching myself!). When our kids birthday parties were allowed to be indoors and no one had ever heard of Microsoft Teams or Zoom. It gets heavy remembering those pre-Covid Autumns, so maybe let's not.  Let's just glory in the small and silly pleasures that Fall affords, like apple picking outside the city and pulling out warmer clothes.

Covid or not, September is still hopeful. Fresh starts abound and new is always exciting (even if it's also scary). The weather is perfectly chilly in the mornings and fresh and sunny most afternoons. The leaves are slowly changing, but we haven't packed away our Birkenstock's just yet. And if you live in our part of the globe, you're going Apple Picking. Like always, we went to La Magie de La Pomme which is about 40 minutes from our home in the heart of the city. 

Speaking of the small pleasures of new fall clothes, Lily and I are wearing mainly thrifted pieces, but Oli and Chloe were treated by Boutique Mini-Cycle to some lovely new clothes recently. Oli is wearing a long sleeve tee, from the iconic Spanish kid's company Bobo Choses and thrifted jeans, and Clover is wearing top to bottom Phil and Phae, a ethically-sourced kid's company based in the Netherlands that I'm in love with! Both of these companies are sold at Boutique Mini-Cycle new and often appear in their re-cycle (used) section too. High quality clothes may cost more, but as I've witnessed working at Mini-Cycle's recycle program, they really do last and last, holding up in quality and style for years to come. 

Apple picking was just what the doctor ordered last week. We gloried in all things Fall, eating a picnic lunch and ordering super indulgent apple fritters before climbing apple trees, playing with goats and lambs, and picking enough apples for five apple crisps (my freezer is packed!) 

I think we'll be back to select some choice pumpkins and gourds in the weeks to come. Last Autumn and it's freedoms are a thing of the past, but there is still beauty and delight to be found this season. We're re-learning this every day.  

Back-to-School 2020

Like most other aspects of 2020, back-to-school has been full of firsts. As I alluded to in a previous post, we have chosen to homeschool Oli. I'll be writing a lot more about that choice, curriculum, and our experience in the future, so for now I'll just say it's proven to very much have be the right choice for his unique learning pace and our family. 

The girls began grades 2 and 5 last week at our regular local school, which is 100% French. I'm often asked how our kids read so well in French and how they became bilingual, and I assure you, I had very little to do with it. The teachers and fellow students did it all! We simply sent them to French school. In Quebec this is the de facto option for most families though Canadian Anglophone families have the right to send their children to English school if they choose. We had the choice between English and French and we chose French. Though English schools have some French, they don't produce bilingual graduates (though I'm sure there are exceptions), and being fluent in French was very important to us. Brad and I both learned French in our 20's and it's been an uphill (though worthy!) journey, so we wanted to give our kids the chance to learn young. By being fully immersed in French education, the kids were all fluent in French by the beginning of grade 2, if not sooner. That said, all three are bilingual and Oli is still receiving a French education, albeit at home. 

For the girls, going back to school after six months off was very exciting and even Chloe, who sometimes hesitates about school, was thrilled to be back. I know schools everywhere are handling Covid-19 very differently, so I can only speak to our unique experience in Montreal when I say we feel very safe sending our girls back to public school. The rules at the girls' school are as follows:

• Students over 10 must wear a mask at all times, except in the classroom (during recess, when approaching and leaving school, in the hallways, in the bathrooms)
• Students under 10 do not need to wear a mask at all, though it is recommended - Chloe wears one
• Each classroom is considered a "bubble" meaning the group are exposed to one another's germs but no one else's. This means they're together in class, for gym, and at recess, and not exposed to other classes (the school yard is divided into separate areas for recess and classes don't do joint activities as they normally would)
• Parents must wear a mask for pick up and drop off
• Teachers wear masks everywhere except the classroom
• Borrowed books from the classroom are put in a "quarantine" for several days before they're lent out again
• Students no longer change for gym class, so on gym days they're asked to wear athletic clothing and shoes
• Water fountains are no longer in use, so students bring water bottles (most already did)
• Students must eat lunch at their desk, which is 2 metres away from every other desk. Our girls eat lunch at home every day, which is new this year.

I won't lie, sending them to school on the first day clad in masks felt surreal and a bit unnerving, but two weeks in and it's completely normal to us. I think as adults we find it more upsetting than kids because we have 30 or 40 years of experience without wearing a mask, but I've found our kids have been incredibly resilient and that seems to be the general vibe at school too. Masks have become a cute accessory. Every kid carries extras in their backpacks and it's become a fun activity to choose what mask the girls will wear each day (we have quite a collection now - some from small businesses, others from big box stores) If your child hasn't started school yet, you'll just have to trust me, it does begin to feel normal. Kids are highly adaptable and the teachers are doing an incredible job to make the classroom a comforting and calming environment despite the new rules. 

In all, it's felt very different this year, but that back-to-school excitement is still a real thing and the pandemic hasn't blunted it. Kids are still making friends, learning to read, and dividing fractions. Teachers are still connecting with students, working their magic, and establishing a classroom ethos. As parents, I think it's on us to carefully communicate our hesitations or frustrations in this season, because our kids really will be fine, though they're definitely shaped by our narrative. I'll admit I didn't do the best job of this during distance learning in the Spring, but I'm determined to do better this Autumn. Of course it's early days and the girls haven't even had any homework yet, but we're all feeling quite good about this school year :)

Having a Newborn in the Pandemic

Perhaps some of you reading this are pregnant or hope to be pregnant, and the pandemic has brought about concerns greater than the typical pregnancy or conception worries. Maybe some of you are new moms, facing all of the firsts in a Covid-era seperated from the "village" that you assumed would be your help. I have many friends who have conceived and given birth since Covid-19 arrived on Canadian shores in early March, and one of them was brave enough to share her story for a video series my church has recently produced. 

Noemie was one of my first friends in Montreal, and was a key member of my "village" as I was pregnant with Oli and Chloe. She would take Lily for playdates when I needed to nap, often cooked meals for our family, and even showed up with a bottle of wine when all three of my kids contracted lice! I was delighted to hear that she was pregnant with her first baby and dreamed of the many ways I would support her as she supported me. Then Covid hit.  Visits, babysitting, and special deliveries brightened the hazy newborn days for me, and for first time moms during this pandemic, they've been lost. This is worthy of our grief. Noemie shares her experience in the French video below. I hope you'll watch it, and I hope it brings comfort to any who are in the same situation. Hugs to all the mamas. XO

What I've Learned Homeschooling in a Pandemic

If you'd asked me before March 12th what I'd rather avoid, homeschooling might have topped living through a pandemic. At the very least, both ideas gave a similarly negative notion. From the beginning of my parenting journey, which is approaching a decade, I've felt passionate about our family being active members in the community, and teaching this value to our children early on, beginning with public education.

Before COVID-19, all three of our kids were in public schools in Montreal (to my European friends, this means free, government-funded); our girls were in grades one and four at our neighbourhood catchment school, and our son was in grade two at a "gifted" school a couple of neighbourhoods away. There we befriended the neighbourhood kids, teachers and parents. We invited teachers over for lunch, got to know dozens of families, and had friendships go from saying "bonjour!" at school drop off to crying together over the death of a parent or being the last ones in a restaraunt nearing midnight. 

Long story short, we love our local school! We love that our neighbours all send their children there, and that most of the teachers also live locally. We've spent hundreds of hours as classroom volunteers, field trip parents, and special guests in the classrooms of our kids and have placed a very high value on our own friendships with fellow school parents. These are our people and we love them and this is exactly the place where we see our children and our family. 

Had the pandemic not have forced our hand, we would not have homeschooled our children, but still, I'm grateful for the opportunity. I understand that homeschooling in a pandemic is different in many ways than regular homeschooling - the confinement being the largest aspect - but what I have learned during this season will stay with me as a parent and has informed future decisions. 

photo by @camdgenereux

We typically start homeschooling right after breakfast and I teach for one to two hours per child. Some days this can happen simultaneously, which makes our "school day" really short and sweet. Other days, it's a six hour day of running frantically from child to child constantly reorienting myself between subject matter and learning style. 

The learning curve was incredibly steep at first, I don't mind admitting. I love change and yet also have a knack for structure so I welcomed the new season of homeschooling and quickly formed a routine. That first week was exciting and fairly smooth with all of us enjoying it. The seamless bliss was not to last, however. The second week I began to doubt myself and felt a lot of anxiety with three different teachers (at two different schools) e-mailing countless documents of ideas, suggestions, and instructions. There were more resources available than we could ever get through or benefit from, and sifting through it all was a very unpleasant task. Here in Quebec, homeschooling has technically been called "optional" during the confinement, yet the teachers have been sending countless documents, websites, apps, and new platforms for learning almost daily. I had to decipher what was necessary (numbers, words, and in our case, the French language) between what was optional (class Zoom meetings, interactive projects and activities) and then choose what I would prioritize for my three students. It was overwhelming.

On week three, I think I hit my groove, at least for a while (remember Brad and I's parenting motto? Nothing is too good, or too bad, for too long!) I'll share more specifics about our homeschooling days in another post, but briefly, I found a schedule that worked best for us (homeschooling from after breakfast until lunch, with the afternoon free for physical activities and reading) and narrowed in on what I wanted my kids to work on academically during this season. I bought some math workbooks online for the kids and have made up reading and writing projects for my older two, and focused on fluidity and ease in reading French with Chloe. 

What I've loved the most about homeschooling is the simplicity of schedule and quality time together. We are always intentional about our kids not being over-scheduled, and yet still life seems chaotic most days because of the school schedule. The girls leave the house at 8:10am for school, then I drive thirty minutes to Oli's school, drop him off, and drive 30 minutes home. In a few hours, the girls come home for lunch and an hour, then return. At 3:30pm I'm driving another thirty minutes to pick up Oli while the girls walk home to Brad. Oli and I are home at 4:30pm and then everyone does homework, most days until supper. Then it's the race to have time together, take showers and baths, and get to bed early enough so the early wake up isn't too painful. Educating them at home is so peaceful, so much less hurry and stress, and we're always together. 

Sounds glorious right? But that last bit about always being together can certainly fall into the category of challenges too. Having my three, who are so close in age, all home together means I'm not worried about "social interaction" one bit. It's not safe right now for them to play with their friends and none of them are really interested in Zoom calls, but the constant togetherness can pose challenges. I also find it hard to teach my kids things I'm not passionate about. All parents are teachers from day one, but the lessons and habits we instill in our children usually matter a great deal to us. We care about their character, their behaviour, and their worldviews. I also care a great deal about literature, so I love teaching them to read and helping them find books they'll love and characters they'll identify with. Am I passionate about science and math? Not so much. Thankfully Brad really loves those subjects, so when he's able to take a short break from work he'll often pop in and offer a lesson on electricity or fractions. But what if he weren't available, or neither of us were capable to teach those subjects well? Homeschooling is tricky in that respect. Thankfully at grades 1 and 4, and a gifted grade 2 (which is closer to grade 5), I can still handle their subjects and provide them with satisfactory teaching and help. Daily I think about how blessed we are to have kids in these fairly early grades during the Pandemic. They're old enough to learn independently (most of the time!) and young enough that if this semester doesn't go so well, they'll have plenty of time to bounce back from our mistakes! 

To close, I'll just add that I know it's a significant privilege that I've been able to be homeschooling my kids during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Though I do still take on some work from home, I've been able to be home with my kids and invest in their learning. We've had the money to buy extra school supplies and my mental health is strong enough to deal with the daily changing realities while teaching three grades. I know this is an enormous blessing and not one that every family has, and I'm thankful. I have made many mistakes, and most days I feel I've failed my kids in some way, but there have been more opportunities to invest in my kids' character and their relationships with one another than I ever could have dreamed. 

Back when I had a newborn, a two year old and a three year old, I was just surviving. We had two years of all three kids at home before Lily started Kindergarten at age five, and most of those years were a blur. These days homeschooling in a Pandemic have felt like a gift, and in some ways, like I'm getting back those years that felt lost, when we were all together but I was so dead tired I didn't enjoy them as much as I wish.  This season at home has been precious and I'm sure the sibling relationships of my kids are stronger for it, we're more connected as a family because of it, and I'm enjoying motherhood and homemaking more than ever as a direct result. The schools are set to open one week from today but remain optional as social distancing will be in full effect for the rest of the school year. We decided easily to keep them at home for the remainder of the school year, because though hard, it's been that lovely. I long for normalcy to return but I know I will grieve the end of this wild and unique season when it's over. 

Two Weeks In: Testing Oli for Covid-19, Quarantine, and the Goodness of God

What a week we've had! For the world, of course, it's been a week. But in our little nest, too.

On Saturday March 21, Oli developed a little dry cough. It was intermittent and didn't wake him at night, so we didn't think much of it. By afternoon the following day, his cough was constant and a fever developed. I called our province's COVID-19 line (1‑877‑644‑4545  in case you need it!) and were advised to have him tested for Covid-19. 

A test was scheduled for later in the week and in the meantime Oli would need to be quarantined in our home to protect the rest of our family. Of course, we'd already been exposed to his virus, if it was Covid-19, as we've learned someone may be contagious for days before they present symptoms, but contagion increases once symptoms present, so he was more contagious now that he was sick. So, to protect ourselves and our girls (especially Chloe who had suffered pneumonia just last month), we made the impossible choice to section him off in our bedroom until further notice. The rest of us would be under strict quarantine, not leaving the house until test results came through.

We delivered his meals wearing masks, we passed him notes under the door, we wore gloves to take his temperature, we washed the door knob and our hands dozens of times a day, and we desperately missed our boy. Meanwhile, Oli was sick and suffering all alone. It was the most counter-intuitive thing, keeping such distance from our boy when he needed us the most. Absolutely heartbreaking leaving him alone when all I wanted to do was hug him, stroke his hair, rub his back.

The next day (Monday), we learned of a walk-in testing clinic that had just opened downtown with absolutely enormous capacity. Run by 300 nurses, the clinic could test up to 3,000 people a day and they would test anyone presenting symptoms or who had travelled. I drove down with Oli and we were seen and tested all within thirty minutes. Quick, clean, efficient, and free. I know other provinces in Canada are only testing people who have travelled internationally and there's a severe shortage of tests in the USA and other countries, so we felt incredibly lucky. We were promised results in 24-72 hours, and headed back to our quarantined home hopeful.

Oli was often up in the night with coughing fits this week, and since Brad was sleeping on the couch, he was closest to him and spent some truly special moments with him in the wee hours. Donning his mask, Brad would go in to offer Oli some Tylenol, honey for his throat, and prayer and at one point Oli even said to Brad that he felt so close to God as he was suffering. He said he'd never prayed so much in his entire life! Being all alone had driven him to God. As a parent, I felt I was doing the very worst thing, even as I understood it best for the rest of the family, and yet even in that, God was doing a good work in Oli's heart. God was teaching Oli of his comfort, his presence, and his friendship when we couldn't give ours.

On Wednesday morning we still had no results, but thankfully a friend who works in healthcare was able to look up Oli's information and read his test results for us - negative. Negative! Our sick boy does not have Covid-19, but even if he did, God is good. 

Oli is still sick, but no longer in strict isolation. Brad and I can move back into our bedroom (hallelujah!) and the girls have their brother back. We've just been on the phone with Oli's pediatrician and a prescription for antibiotics has been sent to our pharmacy to treat probable bronchitis.  Our strict quarantine is over, and if needed, Brad or I can go to the store to get supplies or go on a run for fresh air. Glorious! What freedoms we'd taken for granted just a week ago!

We will still be intensely social-distancing, now more than ever, after this scare, but we aren't prisoners in our own home. We won't be seeing any other people except a meter apart, and only if necessary. We won't be allowing the kids outside except in a nature-context like hiking in Bois de Liesse (more on that soon!) and we'll continue catching up with friends and family on Whatsapp and Zoom. The pandemic is just ramping up in most parts of the world and it's far from over here in Canada, but this personal crisis is thankfully over.

Thank you everyone for your concern, prayers, thoughts, and porch deliveries this past week! Let's continue to take care of one another. 

One Week In: Social-Isolation, Home-school, Home-church and Life in a Covid-19 World

It's only been a week of officially homeschooling and two Sundays of worshiping with our church family via Youtube, and I've already felt the gamut of emotions; some holy, most utterly depraved. My motto, as March 12, when the schools officially announced their closure to prevent the spread of Covid-19, has been "these are hard days, and sweet moments", and indeed, they have been.

After the announcement of the school closure, Brad and the elders at our church had a scrappy 48 hours to make the decision to likewise cancel church and move it online. That weekend was slightly overwhelming but also kind of exciting. I love change (weird, maybe) so I saw this all as a fun challenge and one I was eager to adapt to. That enthusiasm lasted all of three days before I was yelling at my kids, weeping "I'm not a teacher and I don't want to be!", fearing the very worst for our finances, our health, our kid's education, the longevity of our church, and the security of our nation. I told you I ran the gamut!

I'm not proud of how I've reacted at times. Of my temper towards my unwilling students/kids, of my lack of faith as if God were not still on the throne, of my clear excessive love of material goods, vacations, etc., only visible when they're taken away. And yet, this has drawn me closer to God, who never asked for perfection in his followers. Jesus said, "it is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick", and this pandemic is revealing new layers of sickness in me that I didn't know existed. My deep love of control, my self-reliance, my lack of trust in Him. 

I've also seen this pandemic bring out beauty that I would have missed. The things we have taken for granted all of our lives are now precious. Visiting grandparents, healthy kids, fresh groceries, Whatsapp, the Psalms. Receiving news from a friend, or visiting grandparents in isolation through the window, our favourite local cafe delivering milk to our porch, or the hope in Psalm 91... they're almost too beautiful to be true. 

Oh, how I crave a pint at the local pub with my friends, or a long walk with my family in the neighbourhood, stopping every few steps to greet neighbours with hugs and lively chat. Oh how I'd love to hug my relatives, especially the older ones. I think with tears in my eyes about how glorious it would be to stand and sing with our congregation at Eglise du Plateau and listen to sound teaching shoulder to shoulder with the church I love - and instead we can only connect online through videos, words and pictures (though we are still under sound teaching and joyful worship, I must add, simply via Youtube). 

And yes, I long for my kids to be back at their excellent public school instead of in my constant pedagogy and care. Sure, we're doing fine with homeschooling, but I'm not a teacher, nor have I been trained as one. Not to mention, our kids attend an all-French school and my French is nowhere near their Francophone teachers. Imagine me, an Anglophone who has learned French only by ear, struggling through teaching my six year old to read in French. I, myself, have never learned to read in French. I am able, but it's not a strength of mine, and certainly not to the point of teaching another, but here we are. Lily is writing thousand word English book reports, Oli is learning multiplication ahead of his grade-level and teaching himself Arabic on Youtube, and by Jove, Chloe is reading in French! It's not a disaster, God is gracious and kind, and we are afloat. 

Through this week I've seen my heart attach to temporal, fleeting things and am reminded regularly why those things make terrible gods. Control, comfort, money. I'm grateful to believe in a God who is worthy of my respect and my worship and my trust, especially in times of great peril and fear. As Christians, we don't believe terror will never befall us - Jesus was the most moral, perfect being who ever lived and look at how hard his life was - ending in a brutal death! But we believe that in it all, God is good and with us, and one day, a perfect life does await us if we trust in him. 

I guess you could say that this week I re-learned the gospel, so thank you Covid-19.

Redeeming the Time: 20 Things to do While Social Distancing

We're into our first week of homeschooling and social distancing and I have to be honest - I don't hate it. 

These are very frightening times to be sure, yet the increased and even mandated time at home with those we love is one heck of a silver lining. 

Certainly not everyone has the ability to work from home and hunker down in the way I'm describing - especially health care and essential service workers who are absolute heroes - but for those who are restricted to a work-from-home or simple be home capacity, my hope is we'll spend the time well. One day this will be over (hopefully soon!), and we'll look back on how we spent these days. I really hope to look back on them with fondness, knowing that I followed expert's advice in staying inside, but also that I used the time wisely and fruitfully. 

Here's a simple list of 20 things to do while you're social distancing. For many of us, the time at home is not optional, but the way we spend it is completely in our hands. 

1. Sleep more - even if you're working from home, you'll likely work somewhat reduced hours and choose your hours unlike the typical 9-5. Kids aren't rushing off to school so why not catch up on an hour or two per night? 1 in 3 adults aren't getting enough sleep, but now is likely the best chance you'll get to allow yourself to sleep a full 8 hours (or more!).
2. Master a new skill - I suggest you perfect my sour dough-ish bread recipe! But other ideas are to try out a new instrument or start knitting. 
3. Read the entire New Testament - I have the David Suchet NIV audio version on Scribd and it's 20 hours. Thanks to social distancing you have 20 hours. This is well worth your while! Here's a link for your first two months free on Scribd, fyi!
4. Learn a new language - As someone living in her second language, I assure you it's worth the time to invest in language learning! Oli is trying to learn a third language (Arabic!) on Youtube during the time off school, too.
5. Clean out your closet - I did this to my upcoming summer wardrobe and the kid's too and it was so satisfying. I sell my quality kid's pieces to Boutique Mini-Cycle and give the rest away to charity. 
6. Wash weird things and places - Now, if ever, is the time to deep clean. Not only are you going to be home (and it's much more preferable to be in a clean home, no?), but you also have the time. Today we washed the walls and baseboards. Seriously. It was oddly satisfying.
7. Do facials and hair masks and all the things - self-care alert! Those time-consuming and totally optional beauty activities are really fun when there's nothing else to do.
8. Learn to cook new things - Social distancing means we aren't rushing to the store every time we're out of one ingredient, so use up everything you have first and along the way, stretch yourself with cooking. I plan to explore some of my lesser-used cookbooks and focus on my pantry ingredients.
9. Get back to family dinners - I know my family has a lot of evening work and engagements normally so we are loving the chance to all be home for 6pm supper each night. I light a candle and dust off my secondhand English china and it feels very Norman Rockwell in the best way. 
10. For the married couples out there: have sex every day! Seriously, why not? Didn't see that suggestion coming, did ya? ;-)
11. Read good books - You will eventually get tired of Netflix, and if you don't, well, trust me, it's good to take a break. Favourites I've read in the past year include Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman, Educated by Tara Westover, Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom, Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Simonson, Women and God by Kathleen Nielson, and Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy by Eric Metaxas
12. Don't wear makeup! You're not going out anyway, give your skin a break!
13. Workout at home - Even a simple workout like 10 burpees followed by 10 pushups x 3 will get your heart pumping and muscles awakened
14. Ask questions - of your roomates, spouse, kids, anyone you're stuck inside with, or even friends elsewhere online. Get to know people. 
15. Help a health-care professional - these people are truly on the front lines and we ought to do our best to serve them in any way right now. For my part, I've offered to make lunches for a nurse friend. Anything you can do to ease their stress, give them a bit of respite, and say "thank you".
16. Shop online - I usually love browsing thrift stores and I miss it already, but I've done my shopping online and plan to continue to. My favourite online shop for secondhand and quality clothes is Boutique Mini-Cycle, which satisfies my desire to thrift a bit! I've also bought books from Indigo for the kids, and a new kettle from Canadian Tire. There's no need to be in stores right now!
17. Clean out all of the kitchen drawers - toss that utensil or small appliance you never use, wash the drawers and cupboards, because wow they got disgusting over the years! It's a task you'd probably never do under normal circumstances but feels great to have done.
18. Order takeout - restaurants are being hit very hard financially right now so why not order takeout from your favourite local place? Most restaurants are running at a reduced capacity to comply with the new limits for people gathering in one space but almost every restaurant offers takeaway.
19. Watch your film bucket list - this is the time to re-watch your very favourites (BBC Pride & Prejudice, The Holiday, Count of Monte Cristo), to introduce your kids to the classics (The Hobbit, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter), and to lessen those screen rules. I'm preaching to myself here!
20. Keep calm and carry on - this too shall pass, and God is still on the throne.

Pandemic Ponderings

In an effort to process these unprecedented times and hopefully process well, I thought I'd share a collection of my own thoughts and those I've found helpful in the recent days. Please share how you're processing too! There's been great discussion on my Instagram posts related to COVID-19 and I wanted to save them in a more permanent place, so here we are.   

On Friday, March 13 I wrote the following:

The world, or those who are able I should say, are hunkering down and hoping to ride out Coronavirus, which has been made considerably easier given that schools are now closed and many employees are being asked to stay home. Our Prime Minister's wife has just tested positive for it, which, for some reason, brought it all home for me.

Our living room is about to become our school room, gym, church, and work place. Part of me sees thrill in these changes and relishes an opportunity to stay home and hibernate and my family; like Christmas holidays Part II. 

But part of me is overwhelmed by the global panic, by the empty shelves I saw yesterday at a major grocery chain (just the toilet paper section, but what's next?), by the younger and younger people being diagnosed with a novel virus that we were told only affected elderly compromised immune systems, by all of it, really. I'm worried for my friends who work in healthcare and are on the front lines. I'm worried about the many times I've taken public transit this past week. I'm worried about those in our community who will run out of essentials. I'm worried about what social distancing will do for those with mental health concerns and for our economy. 

My church is studying Ecclesiastes right now and the timeliness is striking. This sermon series was planned eight months ago but lo, and behold, Coronavirus arrives at just the time were turning to God's word to remember that material things will not satisfy, that our earthly successes will not bring lasting joy, and that much of the things we turn to in this world for comfort are but a vapour. Smoke. Stockpiling toilet paper is smoke. The stock market rising and falling is smoke. That cancelled vacation is smoke. I don't say this lightly - we, too have lost savings in the market crash, and we may very well need to cancel our June trip.  But I need to remember that these things are not lasting joys. Maybe you need that reminder too?

Practically speaking, please don't forget to love your neighbour in this. Share instead of stockpile. Check in on those who are alone and vulnerable. And remember, perfect love casts out fear ♡

Today, Sunday, March 15, our church worshiped apart but together via a life-feed of our worship pastor leading praise and Brad expounding on Psalm 91. We were encouraged to watch the live fed service in small groups, so the kids and I tuned in with three others who live very close by. Afterwards, Brad led a Facebook live event and did Q&A for his sermon. As we watched dear soul after dear soul check in to the live event we were also treated to pictures of the dozens of other small groups worshiping alongside the live feed in their homes. It was truly so touching. When the event was over, my group opted for a few more songs a capella, just us seven. These are scary times, yet such sweet moments.

Below are other words that bolstered me this week in the unknown and anxious times. I hope they're as good to you as they were to me. 

Psalms or Headlines? That's the question and the choice laid out by Sarah Clarkson, a woman I've come to admire greatly. In this post she writes about picking up the pieces after a home invasion during the already overwhelming time of Coronavirus. She chooses the Psalms and we ought to as well.

I often turn to this newsletter by Matt Civico when I want to challenge myself and go deeper in thought. Matt writes about daily things that we all encounter but with such incredible insight and maturity. Of course, his gleanings on the global pandemic were helpful and beautiful. (log in to read)

Brad shared this Martin Luther quote with our church this week and I thought it was perfect.

" I will ask God out of mercy to protect us. Then I'm going to smoke, to help cleanse the air, give medicine and take them. I will avoid places, and people, where my presence is not necessary to not be contaminated and also inflict and affect others, not to cause their death as a result of my neglect. If God wants to take me, he will surely find me and I will have done what he expected of me, without being responsible neither for my own death nor for the death of others. If my neighbor needs me, I will not avoid any place or anyone, but I will go freely as mentioned above. See, it is such a faith that fears God because it is neither daring nor reckless and does not try God." 

Source: Works by Luther Volume 43 p. 132 the letter "May we escape from a deadly plague" written to the Rev. Dr. John Hess.

This excellent resource for taking to children about COVID-19 was really helpful.

This playlist will bring a lot of comfort to anxious souls.

I appreciate this articicle, which pointed to some incredibly wise words penned 70 years ago that could well be applied today in our Coronavirus time. C S Lewis, writing in 1948 said this:

In one way we think a great deal too much of the atomic bomb. “How are we to live in an atomic age?” I am tempted to reply: “Why, as you would have lived in the sixteenth century when the plague visited London almost every year, or as you would have lived in a Viking age when raiders from Scandinavia might land and cut your throat any night; or indeed, as you are already living in an age of cancer, an age of syphilis, an age of paralysis, an age of air raids, an age of railway accidents, an age of motor accidents.”

 This is the first point to be made: and the first action to be taken is to pull ourselves together. If we are all going to be destroyed by an atomic bomb, let that bomb when it comes find us doing sensible and human things—praying, working, teaching, reading, listening to music, bathing the children, playing tennis, chatting to our friends over a pint and a game of darts—not huddled together like frightened sheep and thinking about bombs. They may break our bodies (a microbe can do that) but they need not dominate our minds.