Quarantine Revelations from a Busy Super Mom

In February you were so overwhelmed,
Between your business and family you were tired;
There never seemed to be enough hours in the day,
You secretly wished you could get fired.

The posts on social media, the news,
The politics, the economy and the crime;
All you wanted was a break,
You just wished for some extra time.

And then just like that, the world stopped,
A pandemic they call COVID-19;
Which forced you to stay home for months,
And you thought, maybe I can finally get the laundry clean.

But then the schools announced they’re closed,
You have to help your kids learn online;
But don’t worry, you’ll get tons of instructional emails from their teachers,
Reminding you to breathe and that we’ll all be just fine.

BE FINE?! How is that possible?
My schedule just got even busier than before;
I didn’t ask for these extra responsibilities,
I wanted less to do, now it seems I have so much more!

Although you’re working longer hours,
Being self-employed means you may run out of money;
You use humor to take your mind off things,
But the truth is, none of this is very funny.

And then a check arrives from the government,
They say to pay bills and put the rest away;
THE REST? WHAT REST?
It wasn’t even enough to pay the bills that were due today.

Your anxiety is at an all time high,
Your body just wants to stay in bed;
You might be able to get something accomplished,
If you could just turn off all the thoughts in your head.

Be right back, my daughter just walked in,
She wants me to go outside and play ball;
I told her I have too much work to do,
Go on out by yourself, be careful… don’t fall.

On my way to the kitchen, I spot her out the window,
Bouncing the ball against the door;
I realized that she looks so lonely,
Maybe I could take a break and play with her more.

She won’t be this small forever,
And usually she’s busy with her friends;
Now’s my chance to bond with her,
I should hurry before quarantine ends.

Imagine all that we can do together,
We can play cards or color or jump rope;
Give her a glimpse of what it was like when I was a kid,
And prove that in this time of isolation, there is also a great deal of hope.

What if the point of this quarantine,
Was to give us a chance to appreciate what we’ve got;
To make memories with our loved ones,
Focus on what we can do and not dwell on what we cannot.

Today I stop feeling sorry for us,
I’ll stick to my schedule, I’ll make a plan;
And realize I’m only one person,
It’s ok to do only as much as one person can.

And it’s ok to go outside,
Toss a ball or just enjoy the weather;
We all may be isolated in our homes,
But we are truly in this together.

XOXO