The Benefits of Rituals Right Now
I hope you had a lovely Easter or Passover this past weekend. It sure was different. I normally have my whole family, about 16 of us, over for Easter dinner. That didn’t happen but I did organize a zoom video conference for us.
It’s not the same thing but we did share a few laughs together and it was lovely to see and hear each other. I’m finding that this new phase of sheltering in place brings new challenges. Rituals seem to be helping bring a small bit of control over my day.
You’ve heard me talk about rituals before in the context of my creative practice. I love to wake up in the morning, grab my coffee, light a scented candle and sit down at my kitchen table to journal or doodle or do a little bit of watercolor work. When I’m able to stick to this routine, it calms me and sets me up for success for the rest of the day.
I haven’t been doing it a lot lately and I realize that I miss it in more ways than one. Are you struggling with the sense that each day seeps into the next? Waking up and not knowing what day of the week it is. It’s strange to be sure and, in California at least, we have several weeks to go until the current shelter in place order is lifted or changed.
So how do rituals come into play? I believe that rituals that we have for ourselves or with family and friends make us feel more connected and help us cope with the growing sense of loss and endless isolation. Connecting on a short zoom call with my family made me feel closer to them. Being able to see and hear them, instead of just sending a text message, made a big difference for me.
My creative community has been connecting with me through Creative Gatherings over zoom 2-3 times a week for the past month. These reinforce my commitment to them and our commitment to each other and have enabled us to get to know each other much better. This is indeed a silver lining.
Rituals helps us gain a small sense of control over our day. And remind us that some things are still relatively “normal”, like brushing our teeth. Or taking the same walk in the evening.
They can even be silly and fun and what matters is how they make you feel. Think about those scenes in the Bridget Jones’ diary movies where Darcy is wearing a crazy Christmas jumper. Or all of the superstitious signs that baseball players make before they step into the batters box. All of that scraping of the dirt or taping on home plate isn’t going to make the player hit better. But he feels like he might and that gives him comfort and a sense of control over his experience.
How about you? Do you have a ritual that’s helping you right now? If not, did you have one in the past that might be worth bringing back or updating in a new way? Try it and pick the same time of day to create regularity. Because with that comes some small sense of control.
I’m going to do my best to get back into my morning ritual and I’ll let you know how it goes.
#staysafe #sayhealthy #togetherathome #artistsinresidence
Remember,
It’s Never Too Late to Create
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MEET ANNE
Hi…I’m Anne!
My creative inspiration comes from a lifetime of observation. I grew up in Paris on the Place St. Sulpice and walked to school through the Luxembourg gardens. And that was only the beginning… Learn more by watching the video on my About page.
