Enjoy the journey instead of seeking the destination

Dear Annie: I compare the anxiety of wanting quarantine to end to those of us who, in the back seat of the car as children, anxiously asked, “Are we there yet?” Despite boredom and uncomfortable proximity to each other while in the car, we finally made it to our destination, and the time was right to move freely. However, during that car ride, we couldn’t just decide we were “there.” Where would we have been? We had to persevere to get to the correct “there,” no matter how frustrated we were about how long the trip was taking. And we had to trust the people in charge to get us “there.” Since the lockdown, I have discovered that I am a happy introvert. All my life I have been outgoing, helping others, diving in at the slightest suggestion that I could be of benefit in some way. In the end, I often found myself tired and empty.

I am retired and live alone, having moved several hundreds of miles from my lifelong home just months ago. When the possibility of quarantine was evolving, I decided to make the best of it by planning to be busy at home.

I even discovered projects that I had put aside. Now, those projects are being completed. Hobbies that I wanted to try are coming to life, too. There is energy to exercise, and, for the first time in my life, I am sleeping soundly. Though I focus on the reason for this time I have to explore these hobbies and projects, and I contemplate the suffering that is occurring, I include thanks in my prayers that I am content. I am a firm believer that attitude is what gets us through. I am thankful to have been introduced to this “me,” who has been waiting in the wings. While being removed from the fast pace that life had become, I hope others have rediscovered and enjoyed what they also may have set aside. May we find that life as we knew it isn’t all we thought it was, and develop a new perspective on our blessings.

Self-Discovery

Dear Self-Discovery: Congratulations on discovering what makes you happy and content.

By slowing down the pace of your life, you sped up the pace of finding joy in your everyday life, and that is a wonderful life to live.