Dear, guys – welcome back to Letters From Liz!
How has everyone been doing? I know we all wish to go out and enjoy this beautiful weather, but the quicker we stay in and stay safe, the sooner we will be able to go back to our normal lives.
But for the time being, people are getting creative. From video chat happy hours to playing games with your friends through FaceTime and Zoom, to even celebrating birthdays on video chats; people are making sure to let those who matter to them are loved and missed during this time of social distancing. Individually, people are taking time to work on projects and develop new skills now that we all have the extra time to ourselves. Personally, I like to stay as productive as possible, so whether it’s me writing for LFL or for my journal article or learning Korean on Duolingo, I’m trying to keep myself as busy as possible because for my personal mental health.
And that’s the thing: not everyone has the energy during this time to keep themselves busy. Some people cope with negative things differently, and if that means they are watching TV and taking naps throughout the day, then let them be.
Sure, it feels good for your body chemically when you keep it in a routine and active, but it’s also natural for the body to want to relax, y’all. Just because we have more than enough time for us to relax, it doesn’t mean that it’s a damn sin for us to want to.
Yes, it’s not a normal society right now. Yes, our routine of school, work, and productivity have changed, and we so desperately want that back in our lives, but please – don’t knock the people who are taking this time to rest.
At the end of the day, you don’t know what goes on in these people’s lives well enough for you to judge and call them losers because they are making, creating, or building something. You don’t know if these people are depressed because their family member is in the hospital right now fighting for their lives. You don’t know if the environment these people live is toxic for their mental health, and isolating themselves to get their mind out of their dark space is the only way to feel better for a bit. You don’t know if these people who rest are essential workers, risking their lives to be of service for you guys at home. You simply don’t know, so you have no say in what they should or should not do.
Personally, I have my days where I’m perfectly fine; I’m able to get up out of bed, work on a couple of posts for the blog, clean up my personal spaces, even paint my nails and keep my personal appearance in check. Then there are other days when the only source of my happiness is listening to Kpop music, watching VLIVE or YouTube, and stay in my bed all day without any interaction because, well, my body doesn’t feel like doing a damn thing. Of course, my mind always makes me feel bad that I’m not doing anything and working on something, but I constantly have to remind myself that during this time, it’s okay if I’m not always “on.” Honestly, who is actually on 24/7 during a time like this?
So take care of yourself during this time. Don’t believe what the internet is saying about how you should be spending this time. Just going through this difficult time is enough.
Letters From Liz. 