Adaptability and creativity

We human beings are very good at adapting to new situations, especially in critical times, such as the current one. Creativity is usually the key to adaptability.

State governments are imposing, for a good reason, limitations on human contact and movement. Stay-at-home mandates restrict our ability to stay connected, pursue careers, and to go about our daily routines to a degree unthinkable only a few weeks ago. But here we are!

As a result, most of us are adapting to self-containment by interacting electronically. As an example, entertainers are keeping our spirits up by performing online and families either FaceTime, Skype, or Zoom to stay connected. Even Milan and Paris are adapting by designing facemasks as a part of their couture.

My wife and I are retired and healthy so far. Here are some of our stay-at-home activities:

• Binge-watched Longmire on Netflix. Longmire is a contemporary Western drama about a sheriff in a rural county of Wyoming. He solves a crime each episode, but the real drama is the ongoing, troubled relationships he has with coworkers, his daughter, friends, and antagonists.
• Watched Unbelievable (also on Netflix), a police procedural drama based on the real-life search for a serial rapist in Washington and Colorado.
• Re-watched Woody Allen movies: Match Point, Annie Hall, and Manhattan.
• Weekly Zoom cocktail hour parties with our adult children and their spouses, where we catch up and discuss the week’s events.
• My wife FaceTimes our 5-year old granddaughter, whose school has closed, several times a week for a couple of hours to read her a story or sketch and color, or play an online game. This activity is not only entertaining for our granddaughter but also provides a break for our daughter-in-law.
• My wife and I are taking online instructional classes provided by Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Arizona State University. I am taking art history classes in Modern and Contemporary Art and their sub-genres. My wife is taking a class on Mindfulness and Meditation. She is also studying The Science of Well Being, a Yale class, which is one of many free offerings through classcentral.com.
• I have started a creative writing course and am writing short stories, which I submit to online publications.
• My wife pursues her interest in sketching and watercolor.
• Our neighborhood has weekly distancing parties where we all sit out on our front lawns, having nibbles and drinks. The conversation is difficult, but the aim is to retain our community spirit.
• Like many others, even our grocery shopping habits have changed. Now we shop during a special hour for seniors: 5:00 to 6:00 am on Wednesdays. Good thing, we are early risers!
• Canceling plane and hotel reservations is more challenging than making them. Now, I have to keep track of the credits and their expiration dates.

Despite the odds, we all are adapting and learning how to make the most of our time through our creativity. Projecting into the future can cause anxiety. It is best to stay in the present and see what is good in the moment.

– Joe from Arizona, a FAR customer who is finding purpose in this new stage of his life.

* The opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions or views of the Finance of America Reverse (LLC)