Grounded – Well, sort of

If you can’t go outside, go inside. ~ Ariana Huffington

There are so many connotations and definitions of the word grounded. Until now. When I read the quote from Ariana, my first thought was grounded as in “you are not going anywhere, young lady,” as quoted numerous times by my mother throughout my teens. How apropos that today, throughout most of the world, this particular connotation holds true. Even, as I write this, many countries, including the US are opening up to various degrees. The ground is shifting once again.

I like to think that Ariana intends to take this, once in a lifetime situation for us to explore more than our living rooms. And I don’t mean just to pick up the novel and move into the kitchen! It is an opportunity to explore the vastness of our interior landscape. At some time or another, we have all wandered the multiple paths that compose our innermost thoughts. Perhaps this is the perfect time to become reacquainted with ourselves, on a few levels.

Even more important now that we have the option to continue to SIP or venture into the great outdoors. It’s a time that we are asked to use our better judgment about being cautious, wearing a mask, and distancing. Yes, those masks are very annoying, it’s difficult to breathe and your glasses fog up!. But, it is also a time to think beyond our own comfort and think about those around us.

My husband and I are in the Andean city of Cuenca, Ecuador.

We are in week twelve. Our notice to SIP came on Sunday, March 15th. The City of Cuenca, I think, is doing a pretty good job. With the SIP decree, the city buses ended all routes and have, just last week, been reinstated. The restored routes will have limited passengers and additional precautions. The original mandate included a 2:00 PM to 5:00 AM curfew. The curfew has now been extended to 9:00 PM. The city is maintaining that you must wear a mask or you will not be allowed into your destination. The majority of the city has complied. Our grocery stores, banks, and pharmacies have returned to normal business hours.

We live on a beautiful, two-mile-long, tree-lined boulevard. It’s the main thoroughfare North, into town | El Centro and South to Tres Puentes | Turi, a beautiful, lush hillside neighborhood. The ancient colonial church from the 1800s sits at the top of the hill. A beacon of hope over its many years. In normal times, the three K-12 private schools located along the boulevard are bustling with hundreds of kids. Blocks of cars and SUVs line the streets around the schools for pick-up. With three schools, three major bus lines, and two traffic jams per day – at 2:00 in the afternoon and 7:00 PM, it was a lively daily scene. I’m not sure these would qualify for an LA traffic jam! But it was busy.

When the mandate came into place, it all stopped. Immediately. No school. No traffic. No people. With the exception of one very large coastal city, the people of Ecuador complied. We all came together to do what is best for the greater good, not just for Ecuador, but for the world. Every day you continue to hear or see for yourself kind souls helping people in need, with the necessities of groceries, cash, friendships, and transportation. Most important is to continue to maintain the mindfulness of those around us, with special mantras to our amazing medical teams that were on the front lines, and might well be on those front lines again.

As the days have morphed into weeks, there is a word that continues to resonate with me, the word is tranquil. As loud as the world news is, we do have the option to turn the volume down, change the channel or turn it off. I’m reading the highlights in the NYT, TWP and The Skimm. All this combined is plenty for me. And when I’m finished, I pick myself up from the weight of the news, dust my self off and sit down quietly to meditate for 20-30 minutes. There is that ‘have to know’ side of me and thankfully the tranquil side that is enhanced with the meditation.

When I was younger and life would rush in unannounced, I took refuge in books or a walk along the beach at sunset. Tonight, I’m going to meet up with a couple of old friends; Audrey Hepburn and Rosalind Russell. I can’t make up my mind if I’ll watch Breakfast at Tiffany’s or Auntie Mame, maybe I’ll throw caution to the wind – stay up late and watch both! Whatever I do, I am grateful to have this option. But more then anything, I am eternally grateful for the good health today of my darling husband [who has been cooking up a storm] my family and our friends in Cuenca and the US. I am choosing to surround myself with thoughts and actions of love, compassion, kindness, and generosity. I’m going to brush aside the thoughts of fear and distrust and hang a sign on my heart that reads – ONLY LOVE ALLOWED IN…

Please let me know how you are doing and what encourages you to go forward. I’m sure many of you live in states that are lifting their restrictions. Please share with us your re-entry plan.