With a clear understanding of the extraordinary privilege from which I write this ( we are all healthy, 2 of us had mild cases of the virus and the other 4 have not had it, and we have no economic concerns), I have enjoyed the last two months! I feel so guilty saying that but I feel as though we got a chance to push a reset button when the quarantine began.

Our daughter came back east from college in California, boyfriend in tow. We adore him so that was just an added bonus. She is one of my favorite humans in the world so having her home for part of her sophomore year has been wonderful.

Our son, a high school senior, has missed his senior spring with its special privileges which he has anticipated for 14 years since he started at his school. He missed his prom and commencement. I feel sorry about all of this, but he didn’t seem all that upset until this week when he had his last class. Having him with us 24/7 has been a special gift since he leaves for college on June 25. His college won’t be the same as his sister’s liberal arts experience since he will attend the Naval Academy. There will be periods where we can’t communicate and not much in the way of vacations. These weeks with him have been an unexpected joy for me, his mother. Not even looming AP exams have put a damper on this period. He has know he’d be going to NAVY most of the year, has strong grades and only stressed about his fitness preparedness for “ plebe summer”. With classes over by 1:30 daily, he has been able to focus on fitness and his friend from the Bronx, who has been living with us, has done it with him.

This young young man, who commutes over an hour a day to our son’s private school, moved in with us to study from here rather than a crowded Bronx apartment. For a few years he has spent just 1-2 nights each week with us so it has been a pleasure to get to know him so much better. His family is from West Africa so his life is very different from ours. We feel so lucky to be in a position to offer him a home. It’s a small thing we can do during a period where so many less fortunate people are suffering.

Non profits whose Boards I sit upon, take me from California to Massachusetts and other parts of my own state several time each year. Now I sit in Zoom meetings for them all and enjoy having the extra time at home.

I’ve always been a voracious reader and had a wide range of interests and friends, but what I didn’t know until my life was forcibly made smaller was that I needed a better balance. That my fear of being an empty nester need not make me see how many new interests/classes/ plays and lectures I can squeeze in.

I said no to two different requests to take on more volunteer activities over the last week. A year ago I’d have said yes to both. I used as my excuse my new quarantine zen attitude. The world did not come to an end when I said no.

I like having time to read three or so books each week. I don’t feel, for the first time in many years, that I have to think of an excuse for why I’m reading during day light.

My husband is reading more and walking more so we have more to talk about.

It will be so interesting to see how much of my reset I can hold on to post quarantine. Some at least. I hope.

[submitted on 5/16/2020]