We are not meant to live in isolation. What makes us healthy and whole are the connections we form with one another.  With our families. Our friends. Our colleagues and our community…  The thing we need the most to feel healthy has become harder to get.

After more than 30 years in the field of social work, I know one thing to be true. We do not need to be victims to our situation. We have choices to make, each and every day about how we want to live our lives. How we choose to show up for ourselves and each other.

One of the hardest things about this time for me has been the loss of travel, the opportunity to explore. If you know me, you know I love to travel. Give me a passport and a seat on a plane or in a car and I’m on my way, ready for what comes next. I thought it might be fun to travel, however virtually, around the US and yes, even abroad, to visit with people and hear how they’re doing during this difficult time. Over the next few weeks I’d like to bring you a glimpse of what life is like for our friends and neighbors in other places.

Today we travel to my home state of New Jersey to meet Robin.

Welcome Robin. Tell us what life is like where you live. I live in Little Silver, NJ which is near the shore and about 40 miles south of New York City. It's fairly peaceful here with folks minding the quarantine rules. Most people in stores are wearing masks. Lots of folks outside walking or riding bikes in our neighborhood. Our favorite bagel shop has successfully transitioned to curb-side pick-up and we are lucky to have a drive-through Starbucks not too far away. These are 1st world problems, for sure. The local food pantries have seen many more folks coming for food and we are lucky to have two pantries very close by that we support financially. 

How have you been affected by the pandemic personally?  The quarantine has kept our extended family from traditional gatherings for family birthdays, for Easter, for Mother's Day, for college and graduate school graduations. At some point we'll have a monster celebration, I'm sure. 

Has it affected your work?  Home life?  I've worked from home since 2005, so not much change for me, except now my husband works from home too. Our grocery shopping has become a well planned, weekly event rather than three trips a week to pick up a couple days' needs at a time. I find we make better use of leftovers now, which is good. Our older daughter is home since her primary school is closed. I enjoy overhearing her laugh online with her first graders. Our main social outlet, our Church, is now strictly online and it's a joy to reconnect to others during the Sunday live stream for worship. 

Do you have friends who have been infected by the virus?  Yes, I've had a church family member recover and one died. 

What has been the hardest thing for you to deal with? The disappointment of not being able to see my younger daughter graduate from Harvard with her Masters in Public Health. That was a trip and party we had to cancel. 

What have you appreciated during this period? I've appreciated the chance to live at a slower pace, although my "free time" resembles a face mask factory at times. 

What are you doing to keep yourself emotionally healthy during this time?  Very early on I began sewing face masks for family. A church friend asked if her daughter could have one for work, and pretty soon I was supplying church family with masks. Then I went online to a face mask request site and found that Our Lady of Lourdes, in Camden, needed masks for their Cardio Cath Lab. My parents have been hospitalized at Lourdes a number of times and I felt this was an opportunity to give back. I made and donated 120 face masks for them, enough so each person in the Lab has 2 fresh masks per day.

Then I saw a small nursing home in Montclair needed masks and I sent 4 dozen to them, a 2-day supply for patients + staff. I've continued to make masks for friends, and some go to acquaintances of friends -- I got asked to make masks for a 5 year old boy who was struggling to wear an adult sized mask. In return I got a lovely mini-prayer shawl, about 3 inches square, from his grandmother. When I'm making masks, I imagine the person I'm making them for, I think about them and it's like a prayer for their health and safety. It's an honor to be asked to make a mask for someone. I had one request where the recipient supplied a pristine Yankees shirt for me to use. I got enough to make 12 masks out of that shirt. He's likely the best-masked employee at our local animal hospital. There's a personal connection to be made, even when the masks are mailed to California or Florida or just to South Jersey. And lots of people have said "The fabric in your masks is so beautiful. Where did you get the fabric?"  Hah!  I've been buying (and hoarding) quilting fabric since the 80's. So I had plenty to choose from, and so much of it gorgeous. I have a great sewing machine and the skills to get the job done. Perhaps God has been preparing me for years for this time. A friend who had a mask from me said "I wish I had one in Hawaiian fabric," and I said "oh, I've got some. I'll make you one." And another friend who admired the mask on facebook got one a week later. 

Do you have any recommendations for others? Use this season of quarantine as an opportunity to reconnect. This week I'll be reconnecting with my Girl Scout troop and leader online. Most of us haven't seen each other since high school years. Take the time to call or FaceTime or reach out through Facebook or email. Send a personal note to cheer someone's day. Support others. If you don't know of a family in need, donate to your local food pantry. 

Surrender, rather than succumb. Grow within the space allotted to you now, and live in hope for the better days ahead. 

Thank you for inspiring us today, Robin.

Let’s broaden the conversation, shall we? Would you like to be featured in our guest interview posts? We want to hear from you! Email me at suzanne@suzannemaggio.com.