I am writing this to you from my house just outside Stockholm. A lot has happened since we last wrote a blogpost here, but we never stopped our bead practice and our weekly talks. This practice of picking up a bead a day, looking at the bead for what it represents – a day in my life – and putting it in another jar highlights the importance of being alive today. It brings gratitude and a willingness to use my time for good.
Our lives changed as the pandemic swept across the globe. I am aware that I, as a person in Sweden, have a slightly different experience than many others who have been forced to live in a strict quarantine. But no matter where we live, all our lives have changed. Our reality has turned surreal. The timeline for the covid-19 has changed many times since early 2020 when officials first talked about a three-month period, but now … no one knows how long we will be in this uncertainty.
The word uncertain is key here. You might say, isn’t life always uncertain? Of course, but our perception of it is not. I believe, whether we feel we are safe or threatened is key to our resilience and our survival. This pandemic has not only threatened our health and our lives, but it has also put a bright spotlight on the weaknesses and grave flaws within our societies. Many has also start to ask the big questions, how am I living my life? Am I on the right path? It is easy to fall into helplessness or powerlessness when you see your dreams vanish. What the beads have taught me is to pose a key question:
- What action can I take today to positively impact my life?
The answer can be however small or big I want or need it to be for the day. The important thing is that I do something. Because in the doing I find meaning, in the doing I break the pattern, in the doing I take control. One step at a time. And that is all that is needed. One step at a time do turn into miles.
