We have been through the gamut of emotions and feelings and all the weird and wonderful things that have happened during this shut in.

Massachusetts has laid out a rough draft about reopening businesses and with the sun shining more often and the temperatures climbing a little more each day, it feels like there has been a collective sigh of relief.

I know it’s far from over and I know the devastation and heartache this virus has brought will linger and leave a permanent mark, but it feels like the right time to talk about all the lessons I’ve learned from my kids these past 612 weeks.

I need a minute

Spencer has been having his morning meeting almost every weekday over Zoom. His classmates and teachers sing songs about the days of the week, a name song for everyone to say their names, a song about the weather and talk about the theme for the week.

It’s a favorite time of my day to watch all these darling kiddos sing “what’s the weather” and “hickity pickity bumble bee, can you say your name for me?” The teacher holds up a picture of a child when it is their turn and they get to say their name. Spencer was a reluctant participant, I think he missed seeing everyone in person, and this was a hard change to deal with. He would bury his face in his hands and say “No.”

But his teacher, being the educator she is, knows that Spence usually comes around and does like to participate and started asking him if he needed a minute. So now, every time his picture comes up, he says, “Min min.” And she tells him thank you for telling her he needs a minute, and they go to the next student. Then she comes back to Spencer and he sings and raises his hands and says his name and everyone claps and they move on.

I snapped this during one of his times on Zoom, which I now refer to as: QUARANTINE ZOOM MOOD.

I need a minute. I’ve rolled this idea around in my head lately and I am thankful I hear Spencer say this when he isn’t ready for his turn. Sometimes there is no other student and she counts to 10 and then he’s ready to go.

I just love this idea of asking for a minute, taking it, and then going about whatever task you’ve been asked to do. I think more of us need to practice this. How much more thoughtful can we be if we take a few breaths before we speak or when you are feeling crunched and not ready to participate in something, you don’t dive in and you don’t say no. You just say, “I need a minute.”

And then you actually take it. You breathe, you think, you are silent, you let whatever is hanging in the air to keep hanging there and then you step in, a little more ready and hopefully a little more thoughtful and collected.

We are allowed mini breaks and pauses. This business of nearly everything in our lives being cancelled has taught me this more than ever. The more we can slow down and be thoughtful and mindful about what our next move is, how we want to participate and how we want to respond, the less we might say things we will regret or do something we don’t want to do or over commit. Instead of having 100 things that we are doing at ½ effort, maybe 25 things that we can give our best.

I need a minute. (Breathe, sigh, breathe. Breathe again, breath.)

Do you?