We are almost finished with quarantine! Deb and Jenny just returned home from the hotel this morning, and the rest of us are finished with quarantine tomorrow evening. Interestingly, all four of us at the house tested negative, despite our very close contact with Deb and Jenny. We have continued isolating in the house in case any of us develop symptoms, but it seems that we are home free. I am ready to get out of here, but the reality that this could happen again if any of the four of us contracts the virus moving forward looms heavy. Being trapped in the house has felt long and tiring.
A theme of the past week for me has been finding ways to celebrate and care for myself even within the limits of being quarantined. Of course food is a classic way to celebrate (and I have indeed made some good food over quarantine), but there are other creative ways to celebrate and show love to myself. Sometimes it has been as simple as wrapping myself in a warm blanket and taking a short break from work. Or listening to music. Or making hot chocolate. Or reading when I need a break from phone calls. Or ending my days with watching part of a movie. These are practices that have kept me spiritful throughout the past two weeks.
My work for KDCA was minimal this week, which was nice because of the chaos of constantly cooking and cleaning up. My primary task was attendance phone calls, and I only had about 20 a day. One thing I noticed this week is that the compassion I have been intentional about practicing towards myself has continuously translated into compassion towards others. The practices I mentioned above of care and celebration are just some of the ways I have worked on cultivating self-compassion. As I continue to pursue developing self-compassion, I sometimes feel hesitant. Is spending time caring for myself selfish? Am I too preoccupied with myself? Should I be more oriented towards others? Yet as I was making phone calls this week, I was reminded of the interconnected of compassion towards self and compassion towards others. I found myself being patient and calm as I was talking to parents, even when parents were angry and frustrated. I found myself going out of my way to try to solve issues that students were having, and not seeing this as a burden, but an opportunity. I found myself seeing my phone calls as a gift, even when they may not always feel that way, to myself or to those I am calling.
God is at work here. Even when we are quarantined. Even as I wrestle with the confusing reality that I was supposed to be studying abroad right now, and here I am making phone calls in the middle of a neighborhood that is very different from anywhere I have lived before. Even when life can feel dreary.
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