As many of you may recall in the movie, The Wizard of Oz, Glinda, the Good Witch, had Dorothy tap her ruby slippers 3 times and say, “There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home, there’s no place like home.” Click, click, click…….

During the turbulent times in which we are all experiencing, I am reminded of how important our home and family are, and with most of us home-bound indefinitely, how fortunate we are to have this time at home with our family to comfort and support one another, embrace each other, play, pray, laugh, cry and prepare and share meals together. Our home is the shelter that provides us warmth and comfort. Our family are the people with whom we can share our most intimate secrets, fears and dreams and the people we can truly rely on in good times and challenging times.

Although this is a chaotic period with which we are all dealing, adversity does provide the opportunity for growth through the choices we make each moment. It may not be easy, but it is a choice……a very important choice. Adversity can either tear us down and make us weaker, or build us up and make us stronger, individually, as a family, a community and a society. The most important choice right now is focusing on what we can control.

What can we control? Although we are practicing social distancing, that does not mean we distance ourselves emotionally from one another. We are human and crave the emotional bonds that connect us. Reconnect with those who are most important to us, our family, in very meaningful ways. Typically, our family gets the last waning energy we have after a long work day, but now we have the time to renew relationships, fall in love with our significant other all over again, embrace the innocence and joy of children, pets and simple pleasures, and excite creativity with family activities, cooking, exploring and more. In doing so, we are not only building up our family, but we are also building up ourselves…….our resilience. Focus on what you can control such as your home environment, intentionally, positively and productively. By doing so, we can create moments that will become cherished memories.

Adversity provides time to see the world from a new perspective; to slow the pace and stimulate our senses that are ordinarily lost in the fast-pace, action-addicted world to which we have become accustom. Operating at a slower pace has heightened my awareness of my surroundings. Have you noticed the birds sing more beautifully, the stars twinkle brighter, the air smells sweeter, the spring sun comforts, the sunsets and sunrises provide hope, and the quiet calms the chaos?

Listen, look, smell, feel and experience this moment. It may feel as though life as we know it is lost, but perhaps the gift in all of this is the opportunity to look at life from a different view by making thoughtful choices about home, love, family, friends, and the simple pleasures of life. Choices that may include, being grateful for what you have; growing from experiences, good and bad; paying attention to the little things that are the grandest, and realizing that life is a gift – open it with enthusiasm each day.

There truly is no place like home……especially when family shares it with you. Perhaps this is our time to adjust our lens to focus on what matters most. After all, home is where the heart is and love does conquer all.  I can’t imagine being anywhere else right now or with anyone else, but family. Be well, love well and live well!

Note: In closing, I credit my Mom and Dad who provided a home that instilled a sense of relief, resilience and respect, by teaching us the value of family, love, optimism, and faith, all of which contribute to my appreciation that there is no place like home.

April 2020

By Lee Ann Szelog

Copyright © Lee Ann Szelog