I keep getting the strange sense of deja vu.
Feeling like I’ve been here before.
Which is crazy on the surface of things. After all, this is a global pandemic, the likes of which have not been seen for 100 years.
None of us have been here before.
Yet, for those of us who have been through one or more of those life-altering moments – the discovery of infidelity, abandonment, sudden and profound loss – this may feel strangely familiar. After all, we know what it’s like to wake one morning to discover that the world we knew, the world which we trusted to ground us, no longer exists.
We are familiar with the grief that sneaks up and tugs at our guts when we’re not paying attention. And we are no longer surprised when we grieve the small things as much as the big ones.
We’ve experienced that strange sense of disbelief, of thinking that somehow this is all just a tragic mistake and that the reality we knew simply needs to be recovered.
We know the fear that comes with the uncertainty and the deep craving to return to a sense of safety. And we know that over time the belief things will return to normal is replaced with an acceptance that a sense of peace only comes once we’ve adapted to the new situation.
We’ve lived through that life turned upside-down, where the normally innocuous things have become threats hidden around every corner.
We’ve endured those long nights wishing things could be different before we dry our tears and pledge to focus on what we can control. And we learn both how small our influence is and also how powerful it can be.
We’ve tried to run away from our pain in the hope that we can distract our way out of it only to find that it cannot be outrun.
We’ve been through those moments of utter defeat when we feel like we’re not strong enough to get through this, only somehow we manage to make it through that day. And then the next.
This may be new. You haven’t been through this challenge yet.
But you’ve made it through others.
You know what to do.