Well, it’s been 6.5 weeks since we decided to cut our Central/South America trip short and head back to the US. A lot has changed since then but I’m grateful for the unexpected time to spend with family and the extra time to step back and reflect.
As unreal as these times feel (and I know my situation is minuscule compared to the billions of people around the world affected), hopefully someday we can look back and see the things we learned and ways we grew through this. How we were intentional in this uncertain season. How we were reminded of the things that really matter. And how we made time for each other — from a distance, of course. ;)
So as funny as it may sound, I wrote a letter to my future (unquarantined) self — just like my third grade teacher made me do — and it really helped me process my thoughts and focus more on the things I’m grateful for.
These are the three categories that came to mind in case you want to make your third grade teacher proud too!
- My Frustrations & Fears: acknowledge these, then try to stop dwelling in them
- Things I Don’t Want to Take for Granted: even the little things (like toilet paper)
- How I Can Help: what can my quarantined self do to make a difference (and on that note…if there is anything I can do to help you, pray for you, or even just to listen — please feel free to reach out anytime ❤)
As I wrote this letter, and very often in the month since then, one of the things that has kept coming to my mind is how grateful I am for family. Hudson and I have both been blessed with such wonderful families and I wrote in November about how each of us losing one of our grandpas in the fall made us think more about living with an eternal perspective and appreciating our short time here on earth.
Since then, with coronavirus hitting, it’s put life into perspective even more. My grandparents have been quarantined away from everyone else, so the other week we did a zoom call with our whole extended family which was really special. We also have a text chain going where people have been sharing memories, but it got me thinking even more about how much I value the StoryWorth book we have of my grandparents’ memories.
I’ve shared about StoryWorth a number of times – and if you’re trying to think of meaningful Mother’s Day gift ideas or an extra special Father’s Day present, I highly recommend it. StoryWorth is a subscription that emails the gift recipient a question about their life once a week for a year. At the end of the year, their answers are printed in a beautiful hardcover book – something to treasure forever!
StoryWorth feels extra meaningful this year to do together when you can’t be close to family (there’s not even shipping involved until you receive the book at the end of the year, so it’s the perfect social distancing gift :)
Another thing that makes StoryWorth special is that you can select people to receive the weekly story response by email, and you can respond back and forth about it! That way, only one story a week is being written/read and you can take the time to really appreciate it and respond. It’s really a gift to the entire family!
My grandparents created their StoryWorth book two years ago and we still talk often about the memories they wrote in it, and it’s brought us a lot closer as a family. If you’re looking for meaningful Mother’s Day gift ideas for your mom or grandma (or for your dad or grandpa for Father’s Day!), click here to get $10 off a StoryWorth subscription for Mother’s and Father’s Day 2020!
Thanks to StoryWorth for sponsoring this post and for creating such a wonderful gift that will be a special part of our family for generations!
