COVID 19 has meant different things to me at different parts of the year.

It March, it meant Anxiety and Fear because the U.S. was given little to no information about the virus and how to navigate it.

In April, it meant adjusting to a full house, since my sister and niece moved back in, from out of state, to navigate this time and have family support.

In May, it meant me overcoming any fears I had about being in front of a camera to offer Wellness Events to do my part to help the community.

In June, it meant watching the death of George Floyd on national television. Feeling acknowledged and seen by people outside of the BIPOC community because conversation began to talk about and address systemic racism. That experience was deeply felt in my body and I felt like it was releasing something that it held on to so tightly since I’ve been alive.

In July, it meant anger and frustration at the lack of information, silencing information and the lack of leadership from elected officials.

There is one gift that I saw early on, which I was only felt recently and I may not have seen if it wasn’t for my mindfulness practice. I’m thankful for space. In my previous career I worked freelance in the entertainment industry. When I was employed, I had limited time for myself and it was very challenging to have a life or take a class to gain a skill or knowledge. When I was working long days and sometimes overnight, I would think about all the things I would do if I was unemployed which included, visiting family and friends, working out, resting, reading and taking classes. Now, that I have been forced into having space, I have been using the time to continue to grow and nurture myself by reading books that I’ve wanted to read, watching seminars and honoring myself in a way that is much different than it has been in the past.

I don’t want to discredit the suffering and death that has occured since December 2019, but life exist in duality, feminine and masculine, darkness and light and good and bad. I have felt and still feel sadness at the loss of so many lives, at the way life has changed, the truths that have surfaced etc. But with everything that is lost, there is space that is created for growth, knowledge, new relationships, creativity and what wants to emerge from within us and within our community, that can only be possible when given space to grow.

On this Thankful Thursday, consider the space or light that is present in your life.