Yesterday I saw a viral post with a picture of Shakespeare and Isaac Newton side by side. It said that while both men were quarantined because of plagues, they achieved some of their best work. Shakespeare apparently wrote King Lear, and Isaac Newton invented calculus and developed a theory of light and figured out gravity.
“Can’t wait to see what you guys achieve during quarantine!”
I have to admit, my eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Why are we turning a pandemic-induced quarantine into another pressure chamber for people to PRODUCE more and GAIN more influence and utilize every waking moment to work even HARDER than before?
Are we so addicted to production, that we can’t help but twist the world’s biggest opportunity to slow down into a demand to speed up?
Maybe you know this already or maybe you need to hear it:
You don’t need to feel pressure to write the next King Lear in the next few weeks.
You don’t need to discover something new about black holes or quantum physics or gravity.
You don’t need to do your “best” work.
Instead, what if you focused on resting? There may never be another opportunity in your lifetime to slow down with the rest of the world in the same way. What if you focused on being with your family and friends? What if you connected with God? What if you wrote something for the sheer delight of it? What if you drew with crayons for fun! What if you danced in your kitchen like a wild person after wiping down your countertops for the 20th time? What if you played a game with your kids without your cellphone nearby? What if you had a conversation with your spouse without Netflix playing in the background?
In a hundred years, nobody will write a viral post about you. No one will say, “Savannah wrote letters to her friends with dainty stickers from Target and spent lots of quality time with her husband and dog for two weeks.” But the people who matter will know, and that is enough.
Sending all my love to you in these strange times, and cheering you on.
