Living with optimism during Covid-19

Now that escalated quickly

How is it possible to live with optimism during the Covid-19 crisis? Just a week ago, my husband and I were in New York City visiting our son for spring break. When our flight took off for the Big Apple, there was no way to predict what was coming. Within a week, we went from being careful about washing our hands to social distancing. By the following week, there were calls to “shelter in place.” We quickly booked a flight home to Florida only to find our stores were already out of toilet paper, hand sanitizer, cleaning products, eggs, milk….and strangely baby carrots.

Where’s the toilet paper?

As I scoured the stores and online shopping sites, I wondered about why people needed to stockpile. I’m pretty sure it’s a psychological reaction to being out of control. When life is turned upside-down, we all try to find something we can control to make us feel safer. I also wondered whether people with their rooms full of supplies truly felt safer or if there was a small amount of guilt. And for those of us without, was this the hardest thing to work through? We can live and stay safe without lots of things, including toilet paper and baby carrots.