We shouldn’t have to apologize for stepping back into things we love or trying to take care of ourselves again.
I stared at myself in the mirror. The reflection was tired and worn around the eyes. The last two years seem to have taken a toll, or maybe it is what I have allowed it to take from me.
I know I am not alone. There are many parts of me that stopped caring in the middle of lockdowns, quarantines, and sickness. I'm sure I can count on one hand the number of times I have worn something other than leggings in the last two years or even did things that brought me joy.
In a way, Covid and all that came with it made me forget who I was.
I think we can all list something that the pandemic, even life before this virus, has taken from us, and it isn’t just people we loved. It has saturated our entire lives, down to the very core of who we are. In a sense, we have lost our way, or at least I have.
We have to stop allowing the last two years to define us.
In the last few months, I have taken stock. I have examined my reflection and I have seen what needed to be redeemed. I took steps, made promises to myself and to my family. I began to live my life again and not allow the circumstances of this world to dictate how I am to live any longer. I have been able to walk forward in joy and take care of myself again.
Honestly, it started as simple as doing my hair and make-up every day and has grown into going back to the places I love. (However, I can assure you of one thing: no matter what I am trying to redeem from Covid, I will certainly not give up the leggings. They are here to stay.)
Whatever it is you have lost or forgotten in the last two years, maybe twenty years, there is still time to take steps forward. I know we can redeem it because I have begun the process myself. I have seen the pieces come back together.
We don’t have to remain in darkness.
How do we redeem the time? How do we take back the things that these last few years have robbed us of? How do we move forward now?
1. Make a list.
You don’t have to write it down, or maybe it is a list you already know. You know what was taken. Maybe it is your mental health that has struggled, maybe you stopped taking care of yourself, or stopped going places or participating in activities that you love. It can even be simple things. Our family had forgotten how much we loved our trips to the library or trips for ice cream. Nothing is too small or too big for this list.
2. Next to each item on the list, make a plan.
There may be things on the list you are ok with letting go of. There may be other things you are ready to reclaim. How can you put those into motion again? Maybe it is time to seek out the counseling you need for your mental health or plan those trips to the library or for ice cream. Maybe it is time to get back into the routine of doing your hair and make-up every day. Or maybe you are ready to give up the leggings and go back to jeans. Take simple steps to get it back. Make them practical and easy to include in your day-to-day routine.
3. Don’t overwhelm yourself.
We have lost a lot and you won’t get it all back in one day; it will take time and it will be a process. I started with my daily routines and worked my way to other things. I have moved slowly through my list over the last few months. I started small with taking care of myself and the simple things I let slide. We have just reached the place where we have headed back to the outings we love.
4. Be unapologetic in reclaiming the loss.
We shouldn’t have to apologize for stepping back into things we love or trying to take care of ourselves again. We should not have to apologize for making our mental and spiritual health a priority. I think one thing so many of us have done is simply forgotten to live our lives, and savor it all. No more. No more will we allow the weight of what is happening in the world to weigh down our hearts.
5. Pray it through.
There is no better place to go than to the Lord. We can ask for help; we can pour out our hearts and our hurts at His feet. We can worship God for bringing us to the other side and rejoice in the knowledge that even in the hardship He never abandoned us or left our side. Ask God for help, ask God to equip you, to grant you courage and peace as you step forward. Ask God to redeem the time and open your eyes to places you need to work on. He is faithful and knows our every need even before we do. Take it to the Lord in prayer.
We can redeem what was stolen in the last few years. We can get back to a normal sense of life before the pandemic happened. Are we changed because of it? Sure we are, but it does not mean that we are ok with letting things remain tragically altered in our lives. Through Christ, we have the ability to pick up the pieces and put this behind us. We have the ability to collectively take back the things we loved and did before tragedy changed us.
We may always carry the mark of hurt and loss in our minds, but we can move forward in hope because we are resilient, and, more importantly, because God goes before us.
Photo Credit: ©GettyImages/MatthiasLindner
Michelle Rabon is helping women be disciples who make disciples. Michelle has her MDiv in Ministry to Women from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and is currently serving as Women’s Ministry Director in her local church. She is also the author of Holy Mess. When she is not writing or teaching, she enjoys reading, being close to the ocean, and drinking a lot of coffee. You can connect with Michelle at www.michellerabon.com
