It’s been a while – actually quite a long while – since I have written about finding joy in this time of Covid. I have a good excuse: we were on a glorious 2-week camping trip visiting the Great Smoky Mountains, and all the sites in between. Talk about joy. To me, camping is at the top of my joy-inducing list. A caveat here: we are talking camping in a camper, which means a bed and being able to eat inside if it is pouring rain. While our camper is dwarfed (literally) by the other mammoth rigs in the campground, it is luxurious compared to the yonder days of tent camping. And thanks to the Covid gods, we have been allowed to go camping without (much) fear of contracting the virus.
A list of joys: taking a road trip, seeing the historic and natural sites of this beautiful country, stopping to for a picnic lunch every day, cooking on the camping stove outside, playing games by lantern light, sitting around a campfire, a cozy sleep in our little camper. Yes, it is joy through and through.
Which leads me to my second reason for not writing for a while. It is such a jarring crash from this ecstatic high to be back home. Isolated. Not that I don’t love my home, I do, but reality is hitting hard. It is cold outside; they are even talking about the possibility of snow on Friday. The options for getting outside are getting narrower by the day. Outdoor dining is closing up. Visits in the backyard are dwindling. It has me feeling anxious, and I am not sure I’ll be able to find the joy so easily as I did this summer.
But I guess that is the point. Searching for a piece of joy may be the saving grace that gets me through this brutal season.
I’d appreciate hearing from you if you find creative ways to find joy in this time of isolation. We’re in this together – apart. There is surely a lot of joy to be found.