Joys, small and large, during this pandemic

I wrote a post yesterday, but haven't shared it out much because it seemed somewhat grouchy, which is a bit misleading.

Although I've been having grouchy moments during this pandemic, mostly I've been surprisingly  fine. Happy, even!

Not me in this photo, but this is how I feel, mostly!

Much of my feeling of general well-being is buoyed by an underlying pulse of gratefulness: I'm grateful that I have a job that can be done online/from home. Grateful that I haven't gotten sick. Grateful that it's now spring/summer in Iowa so we can be outside. Grateful that our sons are healthy and employed and staying in touch with us.

Because of the pandemic, though, things are different. I've missed out on experiences, and I've missed seeing people in person. There have been canceled trips, canceled plans, and not knowing exactly what the future will bring. Working from Home is interesting, but it also brings challenges. So it's been surprising and uplifting that I've had so many new and pleasing experiences this spring, too.

Here are some of the unexpected joys--small and large--that I've experienced during this pandemic. These are experiences I would not have had if we weren't in the midst of a global pandemic! And they've brought joy to my life.

Online Church: Who knew it could be so satisfying?!

The puss and I attending church before we figured out how to show Facebook Live on our TV.

It lifts the spirits to see the inside of my church, to hear a message, and--of course!--to sing some hymns. I usually attend St. Paul's United Methodist Church Facebook Live service, but sometimes I also check out Capitol Hill United Methodist's Facebook Live service. I wonder whether my childhood church, Middleburg Heights United Church of Christ, has one.

Online exercise and dance: So much variety for moving and exercising! Robbie, Aubrey, and I used to attend BodyFlow classes together at the Y--they combine Tai Chi, Yoga, and Pilates, so a good stretchy workout. Once the Y closed, we started doing BodyFlow video classes, which are pretty cool and effective. (Here's a BodyFlow video if you want to try.) For a different workout, I even dug up my old TurboJam DVD for some fun kickboxing.

It's hard to find in-person dance classes for adults, but there turns out to be a treasure trove of them online.  I've been doing Kathryn Morgan's Classical Barre videos, reviewing my Tap class videos (I took tap at Coe during spring term!), and have really enjoyed Alvin Ailey's Revelations Workshop.  Here, try it! You don't need any dance background.

Here's a benefit of online workouts and dance classes: I've been squeezing them into bits of time (no commuting time necessary) and doing different workouts depending on my mood. I probably do more than I would have if I were just doing classes in person!

NYCBallet: The Digital Spring Season has been a delight to watch! Without the pandemic, I would have seen zero NYCBallet performances this spring, but with these releases, I've seen quite a bit! I did donate, and I hope other people who've watched will, too.

Online concerts: The first one I attended was a Red Cedar Chamber Music Facebook Live Concert. The music was beautiful, and it was so fun to see the usual performers, a husband and wife, joined by their high school and college-aged sons. Like many of you, I listened to Yo Yo Ma's lovely Memorial Day concert--those beautiful Bach cello suites. I also heard about another online Memorial Day concert, which turned out to by my favorite kind of chamber music: a voice recital--featuring baritone John Brancy and pianist Peter Dugan! It was a moving and beautiful recital that featured songs written during or about WWI.

Hmm. They're kind of hunky, too.

(In case you think I'm all classical music all the time, Bruce and I watched John Prine (RIP) on Austin City Limits one night, and we might check out some of the other Austin City Limits shows on PBS streaming, too. I didn't even realize they were available!)

Looking at Birds: Would I have done this much birding if there wasn't a pandemic? There would have been other things I needed to do, other places to be, but with indoor entertainment pretty much nixed, we've been outside a lot and have seen some great birds, including a rainbow🌈of birds on one particular walk at Squaw Creek Park: Cardinal /American Redstart. Oriole. Yellow Warbler /Goldfinch. Blue Jay. Indigo Bunting.

Oriole

Yellow Warbler

Indigo bunting. Bird photos by Robbie Nesmith.

Crafting: OK, this is not new to the pandemic. I always have some kind of crafting project going on: knitting, crocheting, or sewing, usually. But during this pandemic, I also tried hand-building with clay (thanks to the Cedar Rapids Ceramic and Glass Center's project kits), and book-making (following along with the Minnesota Center For the Book's videos). 

Fun with clay.

Would I have tried those crafts without being prompted by the pandemic? Probably not.

So those are a few of my unexpected Joys of this pandemic. I'm looking forward to getting back to in-person gatherings, concerts, classes, etc. but I'll always be grateful for these new experiences that the pandemic provoked me to try.