What Isolation Taught Me

Hello friends!

I could talk for pages about the many things I have learnt during isolation the past couple months, (hey, as an extrovert, it was a Big Deal for me) but today I want to leave with you a poem I wrote partway through the quiet weeks spent at home. I've done a lot of soul searching and melancholy musing during this time, and this poem captures one of the most important lessons I have taken to heart.

Via Pinterest

Isolation Revelation

by Gabriella Jane A.

 

It was 2020, a few months in;

Behind us were fire and floods.

A global pandemic would soon begin;

The year resembled a dud.

 

Restrictions set in, uncertainty grew.

We all had to stay in our homes.

The ones allowed out were only a few,

But this was the least of our woes.

 

Work was cut short, many businesses closed.

For many, the money was gone.

So how can we live? The question was posed.

Can we move forward and go on?

 

Thousands lined up for the Centrelink aid;

Government would pay them all out.

Some would wait months before they were paid,

Struggling with fear and doubt.

 

Medical workers were all hands on deck,

Preparing to fight the disease.

Grocery store staff were probably a wreck

If questioned, “toilet paper, please?”

When doing your shop, t’was normal to find

Some grocery aisles stripped bare.

“Please only take one” was commonly signed

As hoarders were sadly not rare.

 

If you were to go out, you had to stay

Some 1.5 metres apart.

People wore masks and stayed out of your way;

(Buying masks was now off the charts).

 

You could be fined for some curious things,

Like driving your car just for fun,

Failure to practice social distancing,

(Essentially hugging someone!)

 

And so we stayed home to work, school, or wait,

And tried to stay happy and sane.

Some learnt a language and thought it was great,

And some napped and then napped again.

 

They later released free courses and shows,

For people to use and enjoy.

People had time to cook, read and write prose,

Make music or play with their toys.

 

As we sat in our homes, (which I would add,

Were probably neat and pristine),

We had ample time to sift through the bad

And noticed this life’s greater scheme.

 

Our hearts went out to the unfortunate,

Like couples who wished to be wed,

People already struggling with debt, or

Those who couldn’t farewell their dead.

 

We were the lucky ones in many ways;

We were given a chance to slow down.

We could learn to appreciate each day

And the blessings that’d still abound.

 

We were given a chance, one we could take;

A reminder of what was true.

We choose what we value, our life to make,

An impact on others’ lives, too.

 

And so, between videocalls, we learnt

What we valued and wished to give.

For life and grace isn’t something we’ve earnt

- It is a gift for us to live.

Via Pinterest

I hope this may have brought you fresh encouragement. :) A reminder that while we may have lost a little, we still have so much. 

I am so keen to get out there and live my life in the most fulfilling way possible! I hope you are, too. <3

(Also, all these words are my own, so please don't re-post without my consent.)