March 18, 2020

covid-19, and our first home sacrament meeting

Life today
sure is different
from life a few weeks ago.
This coronavirus
has turned the world
 upside down,
it seems.
Crazy long lines at grocery stores
and empty shelves.
Toilet paper is hard to come by.
Humanity
is showing its panic driven, self-preserving, greed filled worst,
but most importantly
it is showing it's generous, loving, supportive, and unified best.



We spent a week as a family in California to kick off our spring break.
It was our fourth and final day at Disneyland when we got the news that Disney would be closing for the rest of the month.
Social distancing,
quarantine
have been the norm since.



We spent our first weekend
"social distancing"
and in "quarantine"
with home based church
at a cabin with some wonderful family friends.
It felt safe surrounded by a hundred acres of serene, breathtaking nature.
Inside we roasted marshmallows, played games, ate pie, and talked over the world.



And obsessed over the dogs.
It was a love-hate relationship for Brinny and those dogs.
But at the end of our time
the majority of our family
was just in love
and pining
for a dog of their own.



We gathered in the living room of the cabin
for our own sacrament meeting
and later for a come follow me discussion.
Sacrament meeting looked different
with an assortment of cups to bear the water
and half of us in our pajamas
But the spirit was the same.
The ordinance was the same.
The meaning was the same.



Each of the four teenagers shared messages and talks with us.
So uplifting and balanced.
I was grateful to be part of both of our meetings and discussions
at home.
completely edified.



There was a lot of screen playing over the weekend,
as seen above,
but also plenty of nature walks and quading.

Now,
COVID-19.
Man, this virus has changed our world right now,
hasn't it?

Here are just a few things I've taken screen shots of on the internet.
So much information and opinion is floating around.
And information is changing moment by moment.
But I had a friend share this and I liked how it seems to remind us to remember history, keep things in perspective, keep hope, and prepare ourselves at the same time. (though a week later and it is already inaccurate as the death tolls rise with this one.)



Kacin and Brinna's severe asthma put them at high risk with this virus, and in general, we are trying to do our part to stop the spread. However, I have also been feeling frustrated by the panic and the crazy people hoarding supplies and making things more difficult than it needs to be for many people.

Our school district is officially closed through Mar. 27th at the very least. I am pretty excited about the opportunity to have my children at home with me all day and to get to homeschool them for a time. Like I am ridiculously excited! I am making plans and schedules for our days. We are trying to take this crazy situation and turn it into something good for our family.

So as we hunker down with our families, I thought this quote that came in my email was very fitting. "The life of the spirit requires less and less."



And then this has been my favorite thing on the internet right now
(reposted by a friend, not sure the original author).
So beautiful.


And this one along the same lines.



Praying that we all find peace during this time! And especially praying for all those who are severely effected economically and physically by this virus. My heart reaches out to those people and I am praying to know what I can do to help.