I’m sure every personal blogger in the world is blogging in some way about the pandemic and all…so…I’ll jump on the bandwagon. In truth, I really don’t know how many bloggers are discussing this, but I figure why not tell ya’ll about my little experience with it.
I haven’t had anyone close to me even be diagnosed with it, so it’s not going to be a doom and gloom, fear and hope, fight and live kinda thing about this pandemic. I’m going to pretty much just look at the positive of the pandemic and quarantine. To be just a tad bit spiritual, the scriptures do say that all things work together for those who love Him, and that is kinda what I’m going to talk about. The good that Rona brought me.
We so often always look on the negative side of life. Not to sound callous or anything regarding people who have lost loved ones or the such, but there is even a positive on death, at least for the believer. When we believers die, we get to be with God. Now that is awesome. I get that it really, really, sucks for us left here on this earth. I have had my share of death, though only grandparents so far, but I totally get the crappiness to put it gently of having a loved one pass away, especially in such a time as this virus outbreak. We so often feel helpless to help them.
To get just a little less morbid, we can always look on the bright side of sicknesses as well, like cancer (which my mom had) and other terrible diagnoses, even the terminal ones. Now I know cancer isn’t such a terminal diagnosis as it used to be, and my mom is living proof of that. She was diagnosed with cancer when I was in 6th grade…and…I’m 41 now. Doctors told her she had about a year to live. I’m not going to focus on the obvious good thing that she is still alive, but rather on how she has been able to help others who have faced similar circumstances.
Nobody would say cancer is a good thing, and even enemies wouldn’t wish cancer on each other…hopefully. But we can always find something in these terrible situations that can be good. For example, my mother has been able to counsel a handful of families who had loved ones diagnosed with cancer. My parents were even pivotal roles in bringing at least one such family to Christ! Now that is just crazy awesome. That is just one example of good coming from a terrible situation.
Now let’s go less morbid. I’m going to talk about myself. Years ago, I got a divorce, and we all know that even the best of breakups always hurt. It wasn’t a bad break up, but it still hurt, and it took my life in directions I wouldn’t have guessed. Nothing terrible, just not where I had planned, which is usually the case with most people’s lives, I would venture to say. Anyway, fast forward to current day. Although that divorce sucked, I am glad it happened because it brought me to where I am today. I met my priance (pre-fiancé), who has redeemed my heart regarding marriage and relationships. I had dated a few people since my x wife, but when I met Bria, things changed.
I discovered how bad my marriage actually was. I had just thought that marriage was only supposed to be mostly not great, but with some great days sprinkled in. Now I realize, because of Bria, what a good marriage can be like. Mostly great days with a few bad days sprinkled in. Now, I get that we aren’t married yet, and it will be a little different when we actually do start a 24/7 life together. Still, just from knowing who Bria is and how our current relationship dynamics are, I know that it will be astronomically better than my previous marriage. You see, God has redeemed marriage through her!
So, you see, there is always something good that one can find in any terrible situation. We just have to look. Sometimes (like with my first wife), it may take time to see the fruition of that goodness come into effect, but in my experience, I have come to realize that it ALWAYS does, eventually.
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Now, how has Rona done good by me through all of this crappiness? Although I am not getting my regular income from work (I did finally get some unemployment), I have been able to focus a lot of time on my writing and business. Before Rona hit, I had kept putting off trying to get my business more views and the such. So, being stuck at home has allowed me to be proactive in that aspect. This whole lousy situation has worked out in a small way for good…at least in motivation to further my business. Now, the crappy part is that I can’t really sell in person (where most of my business income comes from), but hopefully, when all of this settles down, I will start seeing some sales from my webpage.
Another good thing that has come from my confinement in my home is that I have been able to work ahead on my monthly serial novel. I have a few months already finished, and so I don’t need to feel as pressured to get the monthly installments finished. I was also able to reformat season one (which took two years to write) of my serial novel into a book format. This way, I can sell the first season as a book and hopefully get some readers to follow me on Patreon. We shall see. As far as my books go, I was able to finish the formatting for my third Bible Dramatizations book and send it off to my editor to edit. Hopefully, by mid-June I can have it printed as well as set up in all of the digital formats that I sell my books in.
Now, probably the most significant good thing to come from this quarantine time is that I have been able to focus a lot of energy on organizing my 2020 records. I learned how to create an excel sheet to easily keep track of my sales, expenses, taxes, etc. I even figured out how to create formulas in excel to do my math!!! That is awesome because I completely suck at math. It wasn’t hard…I just watched a few YouTube videos…and…wham! I am an expert!
Okay, on a serious note, I was able to figure all that excel stuff out, and I even had time to do inventory and all of my current products. Update my business webpage to include new products and the such.
All in all, what I am trying to say is during this life-changing event (and others), try and look not on only the negative aspects, but look for the good that has come from it or will come from it. For some, it is being able to have more quality time with family. For others, it is being able to learn a new skill during these quarantine days. For even others, it is just being able to binge your favorite shows…even though you have no income!
I hope this has encouraged you to think of the positive.
C. J.