The pandemic quarantine created two realities for all of us: to guarantee life safety, we had to be responsible citizens!
At the beginning, I did not believe it was happening. Then I woke up and read a text from Barbara insisting I must stay home. “Do not come to work. We are closing Retrofit due to Covid 19.” The reality sunk in.
My structured life and the things I enjoy suddenly came to a halt, including the daily pilates class I attended at the studio.
The first three weeks were challenging, as there was no disconnect between work and downtime. We were all working around the clock to transition our in-studio Pilates to online, figuring out the new process and informing clients. My brain never stopped working on the problems and details; I did not know what day it was. We were determined to ensure our clients knew we had online classes. It took a lot of work.
I found myself eagerly anticipating when it would be safe to go outside for a walk in the ravine, which is exactly what I did when the time arrived. As well, my back was hurting. I had worked so hard for the last 2.5 years to eliminate my back pain, but after a week of not doing Pilates, it came right back. I knew it was time to get my mat out. I had to continue Pilates from the convenience of my home with the encouragement of my Retrofit colleagues.
Here is what my days look like. I still work fulltime from home. I check in with my family, friends and colleagues, do my own Pilates, go for walks and read. I especially look forward to my daily 10-15 minute Facetime chat with my 4 year old niece and 3 year old nephew. Before Covid, this conversation only happened on weekends. One big blessing of the pandemic is that we now chat every day.
I have had the opportunity to take a 4-week Mindfulness Meditation workshop Barbara taught at Retrofit, which gave me some helpful life skills on how to cope with the new challenges we are living with. By nature, I am a planner, and needed to learn how to redirect my natural tendencies. I am now being more mindful, living more in the present.
I remain thankful for all the wonderful people and experiences in my life! I can’t wait for the day when I will see my colleagues and wonderful Retrofit clients!