In responding to the query about positive experiences during the pandemic, it occurs to me that I can't possibly do so without being mindful of the many people who are struggling mightily with the very things that I am not. I have no immediate connection to anyone who is sick or on the "front lines". I have an understanding boss, am able to at least partially work from home, and, so far, my income is secure. Thanks to some Trinity Church angels, I have plenty of delicious food and am fortunate to live in a beautiful place with enough space that I can be outside and enjoy the Spring without a mask or fear of infection. I am very blessed in these ways as I imagine most of our Trinity Church community is as well.
However, I also have the possibly less common advantage of rather enjoying the isolation of quarantine. I have taken the Myers-Briggs test several times in my life and always come out the same. I am straight down the middle on three of the four dichotomies but all the way to the introvert side on that one, so not having to interact with so many people all the time suits me just fine. Actually though, it is even more than that. I have never fit in well with the conventions of normal society. Eight hours a night, early mornings, nine to five, three meals a day just does not work well for me. Relieved of the social interaction and schedule of everyone else's normal, I have found that I am thriving. I sleep when I am sleepy, eat when I am hungry, exercise much more, and am not constantly concerned about meeting everyone else's expectations. As a result, I am better rested, less stressed, have managed to lose a few pounds and generally feel more at peace than I have in a long time.
Of course, even my idyllic version of pandemic life is not without frustrations. I struggle greatly with the technology required to work from home and, of course, there is the toilet paper situation. I have tried not to question my spiritual calling but must admit that this period of solitude has made me wonder if God didn't get a little confused and some where there is some poor guy working in a remote fire tower or distant lighthouse with a crazy feeling he should be a church musician.
As we begin to see tiny glimpses of light at the end of the pandemic tunnel, and I feel the mild anxiety about returning to normal, I am reminded that there are many people for whom the world is just not a good fit and for reasons far more significant than my comparatively trivial ones. If something good is to come of all this perhaps it might be that we carry the experience of being out of our comfort zone forward into our new life and be more sympathetic to those who struggle in regular times. Perhaps we might have new eyes to see those who are in need and new minds open to those who are different than us. Perhaps we might welcome God's love into our hearts more fully and practice it in the world more completely. That would be a normal I could look forward to returning to.