Last week my school closed down because of the Corona Virus. All the teachers, administration and staff have been working very hard to stay in touch with families, offer support and succor, and continue to provide the children and families with educational materials, activities and opportunities. I am at home with my partner and my elderly father. My daughter is in her home with her husband and two children. My son is in Switzerland just getting off a 14 day quarantine inside of his apartment because he was in contact with someone with the Corona Virus. I feel blessed that my immediate family is safe for now but I also know that we are in for a long struggle that many people are suffering and will suffer in the future, and all our other problems don’t just disappear because the Corona Virus is causing such deep inconvenience, uncertainty and havoc in our lives. We have to come together and use all our wisdom and resiliency to support one another with compassion and loving-kindness.
What I know is that even if we have to be physically separate that does not mean that we have to stop sharing our minds and hearts. Here are six suggestions to help in tough times:
- Get outside! Practice social distancing by all means, follow rational guidelines, but go for walks and hikes, sit and play outside, garden, fish, go for long rambling drives to no particular place, rediscover old favorite places and discover new ones.
- Create art, make things, write, draw, sculpt, build, design, and find ways to express yourself and have creating things together. Find new ways to play with one another and enjoy each other’s company.
- Reach out and stay connected to family, friends and community groups that you are a part of. Write letters, talk on the telephone, use online technologies like Zoom to keep in touch with the people you love and care about. Ask for help and give it freely. Don’t succumb to isolationism but find new ways to cultivate friendships, appreciate one another and build community.
- Find ways to meditate, pray, do yoga, relax, and slow things down. I find myself either spinning my wheels or getting sluggishly stuck. If you have some kind some kind of meditation or prayer practice dig deeper into it. If you don’t, you might want to look around for something that might work for you. Also make sure that you give yourself (and the others in your family) time to do things that you (they) enjoy, that are relaxing, and help you keep(gain) perspective. I like hot baths!
- Find ways to move around, exercise, do yoga, dance, climb a tree, climb a mountain, take a walk around the block, the lake, or the neighborhood.
- Above all be kind and gentle with yourself and the people in your household. Nobody has to be the perfect Covoid 19 parent, caretaker, partner, family member, roommate or single person. Do whatever it takes to get through the day (and the night) that doesn’t harm you or anybody else. It’s okay to watch too much tv, to lose your cool, to not hold everything together. Do the best you can. Be quick to forgive others and yourself! Tomorrow is always a new day and even when it is raining the sun is shining behind the clouds.
My daughter, Sylvia, at my college graduation. 
My son Eddie, when we got home from the hospital, after a scary episode of pyloric stenosis, where he couldn’t digest any food. The story of the week is Shantideva: How to Wake Up a Hero. I divided it up into seven parts so you can listen to it a chapter at a time or the whole thing at once. By the way never force your kids to listen to this or anything else. Hopefully the prospect of a would be monk who only spends his time eating, sleeping and pooping will lure them in, and they will gradually become enamored with how to be (come) a hero of compassion and kindness.
Shantideva: How to Wake Up A Hero
A Flash of Lightening
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPGSEKKxVCQ&t=24s
How To Stay Awake
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7r0x0G_5Z7Q
Patience is More Fun
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXtHuOF4LFw
Enthusiasm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fGv10RXiS5k
The World Is One Big Body
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HW0lqHueY5E
Trading Places
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fdN-7mEmiU
The Hero’s Wish
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2SefyaMKY8
The songs of the week are Join Together by the Who, Love Train by the Ojays, and Like Sugar by Chaka Khan. I invite you to join together with the bands and have a little dance party!
