Open Space Practice, (AKA: A Thousand Shades of Gray)

1. Joyas Voladoras by Brian Doyle. “Revisiting an ode to the heart by one of our best-loved writers.” This is a short but utterly beautiful essay.

2. Paul Jarvis’s most recent Sunday Dispatch, in which he shares “some of the things I’ve been doing to assuage the anxiety and boredom (how these two things can exist at the same time baffles me sometimes).”

3. Is everything going to be okay? from Seth Godin.

4. Let’s Use This Time to Teach the World the Greatness of Introversion. In related news, Introverts Can Hate Right Now, Too, and It’s Okay to Just Exist Right Now, which says, “Read this carefully: It’s okay to just exist right now, and make it to the next day, and then the next.”

5. Journaling during the pandemic, for yourself and the historians.

6. Six Year Old Sings I Wish You Love. (video)

7. Marvelous and melancholy things The Oatmeal has learned about creativity.

8. Keep Going: How To Be Creative For The Long-Term With Austin Kleon. (podcast)

9. That Discomfort You’re Feeling Is Grief.

10. “I live a hope despite my knowing better.” What else can we do? from Renegade Mothering. “I know these things pass. I know we get through them. I just want slivers of light in my brain to keep me going, to keep me from blowing up my life. I want to not make this worse. I want to maybe help somebody. I want to not miss time with my family. I want to not scream at them. I want to face the shit inside myself instead of run from it. I want to write to my friends on that blog I created.”

11. The Importance of Meditation in Crazy Times on Zen Habits.

12. The Tonight Show: At Home Edition. “In these very special editions of the show, Jimmy Fallon takes The Tonight Show to his home and highlights a different charity every night that you can donate to and help those in need.” In related news, John Krasinski Shares Some Good News, Invites Steve Carell To Lift Up People’s Spirits, “Sick of all the sad news in the media, John Krasinski decided to change the narrative by creating a Youtube channel called ‘Some Good News.’ The new show is dedicated to heartwarming, inspiring, and uplifting stories from around the world.”

13. 24 Substitutions for Common Ingredients You Might Be Looking for Right Now.

14. Fearing Shortages, People Are Planting More Vegetable Gardens.

15. 20 Black Yoga Teachers with Online Classes in 2020.

16. You Don’t Need to Sanitize Your Groceries.

17. Dr. Fauci Answers Trevor’s Questions About Coronavirus | The Daily Social Distancing Show. (video)

18. I had no immune system for months after my bone marrow transplant. Here’s how I avoided viral illness, and how you can, too. It’s easier than you think. In other COVID-19 news, Trump Wants to ‘Reopen America.’ Here’s What Happens if We Do. on The New York Times, and People Are Using More Wipes Because Of Coronavirus, Clogging Sewers, and CPAP Machines Were Seen As Ventilator Alternatives, But Could Spread COVID-19.

1. You, kind and gentle reader. I wish I could give every single one of you a hug right now, sit down together with a cup of tea and ask you how you are doing, cook you a meal, go for a walk. Since I can’t, this will have to do, and this is such a blessing. May you be safe, may you be well, may you find some ease, and my you be happy.

2. Technology. I know that it gets us in trouble sometimes, fails us in some ways, presents us with new complications, can be frustrating, but I can’t even imagine what this moment in time would be like if I didn’t have such easy access to information, news, music, podcasts, TV, movies, books, video conferencing, YouTube workouts, recipes, online shopping (especially for groceries), virtual therapy, online hangouts with friends, email, texting with the people I love, this blog, Facebook and Instagram. And that doesn’t even include technologies like indoor plumbing, water treatment, electricity, etc.

3. Practice. Even on a regular day when there’s no immediate threat of any kind, I depend on practice to survive, to stay sane, and that is only more true now.

4. Daily workouts with Eric. This was us after our workout today, sweaty and happy, (I swear, Eric has pants on). We are both so much happier when we move, and without the gym and yoga studio, we’ve had to get creative. The schedule I’m trying right now is every other day, I walk dogs with Eric and we do yoga together, and on the opposite days, we do a HIIT workout from YouTube (we’ve been enjoying Body Coach TV) and I do some yoga on my own. It really helps with my state of mind. And to be clear, that’s just me, what I need, and in no way is intended to imply that anyone else has to use this time to move in any sort of way that doesn’t make them feel good, calm and safe. You do you!

5. Morning walks. I’m going more often now, and it feels so good to get outside. I’m grateful we are used to walking early, before anyone else is really out. With the time change, it’s still pretty dark, with the sun only starting to rise as we are on our way back home.

6. My tiny family. I am so so so lucky that I love them so much, that they are my favorite way to spend my time, that everyone so far is safe and well and happy.

Bonus joy: fresh fruits and vegetables which seem so precious right now, sitting out on the patio in the sun, the sound of the birds in the morning, our irises and tulips and daffodils starting to come up, everything getting green, the people I know who’ve been sick getting better, hanging out with Chloe’ and Mikalina, texting with my brother and mom, pick up groceries (we wanted to try delivery but that service is overwhelmed), buying seeds for our garden (we are planting ALL THE THINGS this year), clean water, how well Sam did at his physical therapy appointment without me (they came out and got him out of the car, physical distancing from the humans to keep the vets and techs safe, doubly important to me because they not only take care of my dogs but they are my yoga students and I love them so much, want them all to be safe and well), that I live in a state where our leadership is being so careful, finally having a year where we’ll get a refund on our taxes (all due to the electric car we bought, the refund for which will pay off our other car), sunshine, reading in bed at night while Eric and the dogs sleep, napping with Sam, Ringo getting the zoomies in the backyard, a kitchen counter love note from Eric even though neither one of us are leaving the house much right now, all the plants that Eric had to bring home from his office, (I’d wanted more plants, just not like this).