I've read some interesting things relating God's use of 40 days in the Bible to this quarantine. In fact, the origin of the word quarantine comes from the Italian word "quarantena" meaning "forty days", and the fact that this quarantine began during the time of Lent this year, had me reflecting often on God's purpose and timing of this world pandemic. Some have said a much needed revival is coming, which is supported by a stat I heard this week from two sources that online church services are being viewed by as many as 6x more than the number of regular church attenders who showed up before the pandemic. 6x? That is truly amazing, Ronnie Stevens called it a Romans 8:28 benefit (God causing all things to work together for good)...God's providence in the face of something that appears so bad.
During Holy Week of this quarantine, in my quiet time I was reflecting on Ephesians 5:16 - "making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.", from a devotional which essentially stated - Redeem the Time - make good use of every opportunity you have during this time. How can I be more intentional through this disruption of routines and the slowing down of our normally fast-paced lives? How can I be more grateful for the blessings I do have (Cindy and I both have jobs which allow to us to continue working while 30 million Americans have lost their jobs). I'm thankful for the opportunity we've had to enjoy more family dinners during these weeks, and the return of family game nights on occasion. And, last Friday night, we enjoyed a family movie night as the girls had never seen "Die Hard."
So, what have I missed the most as a result of this pandemic? Baseball for sure. Opening Day (3/26) was right around the corner when all social gatherings of 50 or more people were forced to shut down. I had just completed my 4th fantasy baseball draft, and I was really looking forward to traveling to Dallas on Good Friday for the Astros-Rangers series in the new Globe Life Field. Also, I miss the routines in my life: my 5am workouts at Orange Theory followed by my daily 22 minute commute to and from work in which I enjoy catching up on my favorite podcasts. A positive thing from this quarantine...it has created a new routine which I very much look forward to every single day: my daily walk/run at our neighborhood park. When both of my gyms closed, I made the decision to remain active by committing to running/walking 4-6 miles every day. Of course not knowing how long this quarantine would last, I wanted this time of daily exercise to be just as memorable as everything else I'm experiencing in this life change; an hour to reflect on the changing times. Furthermore, I had just completed a 6-week Keto diet, losing 15 lbs, and I wasn't about to let these home-bound/TV binge-watching days set me back, so the journey began on Monday 3/23. Usually around 5p, after I wrap up my WFH for the day, I head out with my iPhone in hand and jabras in my ears to enjoy these spring days at the park. Also, Taylor has joined me in the quest to exercise daily which has been fun to track with her as well. She mentioned yesterday that she wants to run in my next 5K - whenever that may be! With my weekly goal of 35 miles, I'm currently at a total of 195 miles tracked on day 40, which will surpass 200 miles on my run later today. Looking forward to continuing this routine as we head toward summer, and knowing my WFH has been extended thru the end of May.
As of this morning, the news is reporting that Phase 1of the re-opening of Memphis and Shelby County is set to begin on Monday 5/4. So we are beginning to see some signs of return to normalcy; however, as many have said, this will be a "new normal". God only knows what this return will actually look like. Until the vaccine is available (next year?), social distancing and no more handshake greetings will be our new way of life.
