Structure at home has been our saving grace these last few weeks.
Last night, over dinner, ensconced at home during COVID-19, I asked my kids four simple questions:
1. What did you do for your mind today?
2. What did you do for your body today?
3. What did you do for your soul today?
4. What did you do for your others today?
The answers ranged from the simple — “I walked the dog” or “I read a book” or “I swept the kitchen floor” or “I ate nutritious food” — to the profound — “I rested.”
Can structure at home help you?
As the days ahead turn into weeks, and the weeks ahead turn into months, I asked these questions not because I have any great understanding of this new normal in which we all, every single one of us together alone find ourselves, but because I know that some semblance of structure and order keep chaos at bay.
Your structure might manifest itself in furious clutter clearing and closet reorganization. Your structure might manifest itself in a daily practice of meditation, exercise, or Netflix or video games. Your structure might be one of so many brilliant posts I’ve seen about how to schedule the days at home, how to keep kids occupied, how to continue to push the education. I salute all of these; your structure is simply your structure, and it’s the only one that counts.
In the absence of stories, we create monsters. And monsters thrive in the dark recesses of our unoccupied minds, bodies, and souls. Structure at home is Kryptonite to monsters.
This is the structure at home that we are using. Yours will be yours and, as such, perfect for you.
For now we stay focused on COVID-19. Until everything changes again tomorrow.
Want more immediately actionable tips like this?
