Reality Sets In

Social distancing officially began three days ago, but with all the errands that have been necessary in the past few days, life kind of felt like business as usual for us. Today was the first day when we were all home when we wouldn’t normally have been, doing things we wouldn’t normally be do at home. We held our own little version of church, including the sacrament. Partway through the morning, I got an email letting me know that rehearsal for the general conference choir had been cancelled. As of now we are still planning to sing for conference but will do so with half the number of rehearsals originally scheduled. While it was in no way unexpected, it was a disappointment. There was no ward choir practice either and no presidency meetings for Nathan and Matthew. Our traditional big family dinner at my parent’s house was also cancelled. And with all those changes, the weight of the situation in which we find ourselves settled on my shoulders.

All of us have things that we will not be able to do as a result of the insane circumstances in which we find ourselves. There have been, and I’m sure will continue to be, cancellations of all kinds. We will be separated from those with whom we would normally associate. There will be disappointments of all kinds. And I suspect there will be an emotional toll as well. And yet, it feels like the Lord has been preparing us for this exact situation. We’ve had just over a year learning how to have church at home with the “Come, Follow Me” program. We’ve had a couple of years of ministering, which is the main way that the leadership in my ward is reaching out to all the members of the ward, making sure needs are met, making sure no one is completely cut off from others and helping lift spirits. The move to sharing most ward and stake announcements via email has given us a previously established method for getting information out to everyone. The new children and youth program is helping us meet the various needs of our young ones with the focus on family involvement. So although things are definitely not normal, I can’t help but feel that we’ve been given the tools we need to survive, and possibly even thrive, in these uncommon days, these last days.