“Praise Adonai, O my being,

Adonai my God, You are grand indeed!

You are clothed in surpassing splendor—”

Inspiration

They say that desperate times call for desperate measures. I say that desperate times call for creativity. Somewhere along my spiritual journey, I learned that one of the key components for happiness is the engagement in creativity. In whatever form suits you. Some find creativity through writing or drawing. Others find it in gardening or cooking. And yes, some people engage in creativity through science and math. It doesn’t matter how we engage. It just matters that we do.

I have found that my decades worth of work and engagement in creativity have served me really well during this quarantine. In fact, whenever someone asks me how I stay sane, my answer is always “I get creative.” And you can too. Some of you already are.

For me, the quickest and surest way to normalize this crazy time we’re living in was to think about how I balanced my life pre-quarantine and how I would be able to transfer that same balance to my time in quarantine. What were the things that were important to me 6 weeks ago and how can I make sure that I keep them in my life now? This task called for creativity, commitment, and a willingness to try and fail.

When I thought about it, I found that the things I valued most were connection, reflection, learning, downtime, and celebration. So I found ways to create that for myself in this new normal. I’m constantly on zoom, FaceTime, and houseparty, I take time for myself -quiet time, I let myself sleep, I take online classes and read books, and most importantly, I make sure that every celebratory moment is celebrated in some way.

One of the interpretations given for this psalm speaks of our relationship with our Creator. Just as God breathes life into us, we are called to return the favor by breathing life back into the world. We are called to be creators.

If you haven’t already done this, think back to your life pre-quarantine. What was important for you? What brought you joy? What brought you purpose? How can you take those things and infuse them into your new normal?

I would LOVE to hear how you’re getting creative so please share!

Love you all,

Gabi