Patch #6: A Hidden Hem

Welcome back! …Some spring break this has turned out to be huh? I hope everyone is staying safe and well. Some of you all have reached out to me and asked if I was planning on posting anytime soon…which I had been! Today I woke up with a special message in my heart that I wanted to share with you all. Fair warning, I’m getting a little deep here if that’s okay with everyone. If that’s fine, let’s get to it. 🙂

The day that I found out that the college I attend got shut down for the rest of the semester was the day that the affects of what was going on really hit. Of course I felt sympathy for all those who were already dealing with this virus on the other side of the world, but I don’t think anyone was prepared for just how dire these circumstances would become. The day that I started hearing all these cities going on lock-down all around us was the first time I ever felt it since it all began: fear. I found myself staying up late at night terrified for my family, friends, even for people I didn’t know. The fact that I didn’t and still have no clue what could happen in a month or even just a week is one of the most unsettling feelings ever. It’s scary. I know I’m not the only one who feels like this…I know a lot of you guys experience this fear with me on the daily. It’s okay to be scared sometimes…but what’s gonna make or break us is if we decide to let this fear consume us. We have to be strong.

I’m going to be honest when I say that it has been so hard for me to keep my head up at all times since this has all began. Each and every day I find myself going through a whirlwind of emotions. I get scared. I get angry. I get sad, lonely, frustrated, stressed, restless, tired, you name it. But I refuse to let myself sit in those emotions to the point of letting them change who I am. I tell myself that I am stronger and then I DO something about it. I have to. WE have to guys. Loneliness is probably the easiest thing to feel during a time of literal isolation, but you’re not alone…we’re all feeling the same thing…we’re all still here.

When you’re sad and lonely, give your loved ones a call, video chat them, surround yourself with warmth, be stronger. When work or online classes are causing you to feel stress or frustration, step away for a second, breathe, and remind yourself that you are stronger. When you’re angry, tired, and restless all at once, please, let herself be human and feel...but don’t stay there. You. Are. Stronger. Strong enough to let yourself feel, but strongER when it comes to getting up when you’re down.

Today I want to encourage you to start doing something if you haven’t been doing so already. During this time in our lives we are being surrounded with destruction. Physical, social, and emotional destruction is happening all around us so what I want us all to do is the opposite: create. I challenge everyone to create something and let it be an extension of yourself. Make music, write a song or a book, choreograph a dance, paint a picture, knit a blanket, create a board game, build a fort, make a silly video, bake a cake, cook a dinner, design an outfit, start a blog! Anything that brings something that once didn’t exist, into existence. Make it you. Personalize it. Maybe something you create, is gonna help somebody who needs it right now. Give it a try.

We’re living through something that’s going to go down in history. How do you want to be remembered? In the future, when you look back on these times, who do you want to remember yourself as? Someone who let fear keep them down, or someone who got back up and fought? The choice is yours.