“History tells us that Isaac Newton, during his isolation from the plague in 1665, used the time to discover the theory of gravity. Years before, when the quarantine forced the English to change their habits and work from home (1592-1594), instead of giving up, the creator of Hamlet, and Romeo and Juliet took the opportunity to inspire himself by creating poetry. When a second plague arrived in 1605, Shakespeare suffered through that misery by writing two of his masterpieces, Macbeth and King Lear.”
Just as our bodies have emotions that must be released and cleansed, our house demands the same. Doing so creates an atmosphere of inner calm that allows you to work on other aspects of life.
There is no better time than during lockdown to thoroughly clean all our rooms and donate clothes, kitchen utensils, toys, and other items to people who might need them. The moment is ideal to create an atmosphere of both physical and emotional peace. Of course, the work will be strenuous.
Creativity emerges from necessity. Activities that you had not tried before or met with limited success, resulted in learning and a positive outcome. An example for me was cooking. I moved my office to the kitchen. While I boiled the beans or heated the oven, I devoted myself to writing and attending to work matters. The recipes flowed out of my computer prompting me to cook something different every day.
In addition to the high standards of hygiene that had to be taken care of, from washing and disinfecting the purchased merchandise, it was necessary to prepare healthy meals. I was able to please each member of the family even though they had different needs and preferences. Actually, after long and exhausting days where I cooked almost nonstop, I truly appreciated being served a dish at a table. I recognize my ability to cook is limited. However, my children’s comments encouraged me to continue: “Mom, why have you never cooked before, your dishes are delicious,” and “we didn’t know you could bake cakes.”
Staying hydrated was one of my goals. I have always been concerned about the quality of the water, and although we drink filtered water, I decided to purchase a device where the vital liquid is as alkaline (11.5 / 9.5 / 9.0 / 8.0 / 7.0 / 6.0) or as acidic (2.5) as we desired. With this equipment, I prepared liters of different kinds of water every day: for drinking, disinfecting, removing pesticides, for skin care, for cleaning surfaces, soaking cutlery, and more. All this resulted in a lower purchase of chlorine and other deep cleaning chemicals, such as glass cleaner.
The benefit of this equipment was not only health-based, it helped avoid environmental pollution by reducing our daily carbon footprint. My children even watched me make combinations of water for all the different uses in recycled glass containers. They could not believe how the same clear liquid was sometimes drinkable and other times meant to clean the floor.
The children referred to it as my “water lab” and that is how I started creating! With the help of the vital liquid mixed with eucalyptus, citronella, and lemon oils, I prepared an insect repellent or a wood cleaning product. Naturally, I made tonics with rosemary, cinnamon, and other herbs and spices.
Daily routines are necessary for humans to develop self-confidence. When we go on vacation, we usually lose them. However, it’s only temporary. When we return home, we feel comforted. We do our best to stick to schedules for cooking, exercising, working, and resting. Each one plans his or her day and forges a routine at home according to personal requirements and obligations. Today, in times of the pandemic, everything must be done with patience and without thinking about tomorrow.
Even without a 100 percent active professional clients, colleagues and employees, we have to take care of obligations like paying salaries, taxes, telephone, electricity, and gas bills. On the other hand, we have to stay on our feet, take care of our children and assimilate all the stress generated by the news.
One of my favorite stress-free hobbies is going to the library. It is, in part, something I inherited from my grandfather. It’s also a personal project. I have a collection of dusty books eager to be shaken. The writers of the nearly 6000 volumes, waiting their turn have their covers cleaned, thought, hopefully, her eyes are focused inside us and the work of dusting will entertain her for more days than quarantine itself. Then, even in lockdown, she will then be able to travel to faraway places.
The authors have become, without a doubt, my refuge. Jane Austen, Rudyard Kipling, Robert Louise Stevenson, Julius Verne, Mario Vargas Llosa, George Orwell, Garcia Marquez, Leon Tolstoi and Daniel Defoe, among many others, have made me forget the pandemic world and enter other lives, stories, and dimensions. On day 120 of my confinement, I could say that I have lived with more imaginary friends in that silent world of letters than in real life. Their company has forced me to step up and write my next book in the hours of a pandemic.
The success of my day depends on being organized, eating well, and most of all, getting a good night’s sleep. I have completely abandoned television and news during leisure hours and returned to what brings me well-being. My agenda now includes activities that strengthen me, such as nature walks and meditating.
Daily exercise keeps me healthy and I have returned to ballet practice. Walking and being able to dive into the sea is also a blessing. And, most importantly, I now have the time to connect with my inner self through personal reflection, which makes me mentally strong.
I learned that the best times in my life are with myself. Either in the sunrise or in the sunset there is always something beautiful to see.
Jumping whales, dozens of manta rays close to shore, flowers, bees, even the birds and bats themselves are a spectacle. The entire natural environment, which has had time to revive absent human intervention, has once again made Los Cabos, Baja California Sur a magical place ready to open its doors to the world.
Although our environment has changed and the solution is still in the distance, as the quote goes, “As long as there is life there is hope.” With that, the impact of social distancing will hopefully bring us closer in the future and not just in appearance but in reality.
