It’s Been a Year
It’s been a year.
It’s been 12 months since stories appeared about a new viral respiratory illness that was spreading in China.
It’s been nearly a year since George Floyd died, and the need to state the obvious — that Black Lives Matter — gained strength and urgency amid the grief and pain.
It’s been about a month since a violent insurrection erupted seven miles from my home.
It’s been nearly a year since I sat back, reviewed the long list of canceled workshops and trainings, and asked, “How am I going to keep going? Why am I even doing this?”
The answer to “Why” isn’t hard to find. I can find it in need for scientific advances, in the need for more and better and deeper conversations about race, in the need for a renewed commitment to social justice and democratic government. I can find it in my need to make a contribution, however small, to all of that.
The answer to “How?” turned out to be fairly straightforward: take what I do in groups of people in person and do it “remotely” or “virtually” or “online” (pick your descriptor for “from my office while wearing yoga pants and a nice top with an attractive scarf”).
Here’s some of what I’ve learned:
I’ve learned to forgive myself and others for gaps and lapses, missed emails, forgotten meetings, and slow responses. Even for folks like me with the advantage of a home-based business, high-speed internet, no school-aged children, and the ability to get pretty much anything delivered to the door, the stress is real. I know it’s worse for those who lack my privilege. The effects of the stress of this year on productivity, efficiency, organization, and short-term memory can’t be fixed; they can only be coped with.I’ve learned to forgive myself and others for snapping, sniping, and snark, angry flare-ups, crabbiness, and general grouchiness.
I’ve learned that I can learn new stuff — new technology, new ways to get people talking about tough topics like privilege and harassment and how to act as an ally and be an active bystander. I learned new ways to connect with distant family and friends, ad new ways to organize my thoughts and my schedule. (Ask me about bullet journaling!)
I’ve learned that discrimination, oppression, harassment, and bullying in work and professional settings don’t stop during quarantines and pandemics. They don’t even look too different from the in-person varieties. And there are time when all this technology we’re using works in our favor. It is harder to get away with bad behavior when you’re in a Zoom room with your name and possibly your face displayed, your comments saved, the session recorded.
Most of all, I’ve learned that my clients — both new and well-established — were not willing to let go of their commitment to creating safe, welcoming, inclusive community spaces, even if those spaces were “virtual.” I am so utterly grateful to them for that.
It’s been a year.
Photo by Chris Saur courtesy of Unsplash
