“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” ~Philippians 4:6-7
During the pandemic everyone experiences sadness, fear, grief, worry, confusion, and even depression. However, there is also comfort to be found in realizing that in some of life's highest highs, and lowest lows, we are all on the same boat, paddling together towards the same life-saving shore. As Filipinos join the world in the race to save lives by our courageous frontliner heroes (Thank You), retain our humanity, and still find reasons to smile and feel grateful in the midst of a pandemic, I myself have gone down personal paths of self-reflection and spiritual learning.
A lot of my family and friends asked me the same question. How is your situation during the pandemic and quarantine? I couldn't answer right away instead I pause for a while and replies "I am blessed". This year has turned out to be so different from what we're all expecting. I'm sure you all had your respective plans for 2020 but we all have to make different plans in light of the current pandemic. I myself had ahead of time planning for my 40'th birthday and family reunion but like anyone else, we had to prioritize the more important matters during the lockdown. As we all know the COVID situation has impacted so many aspects of our lives, it's a bit normal as a regular Filipino to be feeling overwhelmed, concern, and anxious about the situation.
There had been good and bad (in a way blessings in disguise) impact to most of the families affected but what I do to get through the situation are the things I took for granted when we're pandemic free or not being locked down and get stuck with my family at home. It was a blessing in disguise because even though I wasn't been able to travel and enjoy the summer that had passed by I got the chance to have a summer vacation with the whole family at home with my sisters, nephews, and cousins, which I miss doing. Bonding, that is because I get to cook, unite, and have a conversation with each and every one. I Miss doing it all. Being stuck at home actually is not bad at all. You take more selfies with the family, you eat together, play games together, watch movies together, and laugh together, and though it was a 3-month boring lockdown its a new normal realization that when everything gets back to normal will surely miss the moments being lockdown with the whole family.
The pandemic taught me a lot of things and one of the highlights is managing to budget and still manage to cook a meal that my family had enjoyed, while some are struggling to have food on their plate I am thankful that each member of my family shared blessing for everyone to survive and thankful for all the financial and food are given. Those simple things make me realize how important unity is through this tough times of our life. Its just Coronavirus I believe we are bigger and much stronger if we just pray for guidance and be a blessing to everyone no matter how small or big it is.
What's inspiring me now to move forward is the thought that making sure my family is safe from the virus and healthy to continue living and hoping this will soon pass and we could get back and live life to the fullest. We got through triumphs and struggles, and that I pray for better days to come in God's grace and mercy. I wanna make sure I get to spend more quality time with my family outside our home by traveling, dine-in, watch movies, and of course, go to church and thanked God for he has protected us amidst the crisis and pandemic.
The world may never be the same again and we may live to the "New Normal" but one thing I'm sure of if we have the faith to face everything in the future we could also have the courage to encourage and help anyone in need may it be in small kind, inspirational words of wisdom, or prayers. Because God will always provide, heal, and forgives.....
This story is an entry to ComCo Southeast Asia’s “Write to Ignite Blogging Project”. The initiative is a response to the need of our times, as every story comes a long way during this period of crisis. Igniting and championing the human spirit, “Write to Ignite Blogging Project” aims to pull and collate powerful stories from the Philippine blogging communities to inspire the nation to rise and move forward amidst the difficult situation. This project is made possible by ComCo Southeast Asia, co-presented by Eastern Communications and sponsored by Electrolux, Jobstreet, and Teleperformance.
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