Shut Down Round Two

Two weeks or longer?

Yesterday I went to work, it was an ordinary day, busy in the morning with procedures (spays, dentals etc.) and the afternoon will filled with with appointments. We were short one person and my coworker received some really bad news so we were watching her like a hawk to make sure if she needed to leave she could. There were phone calls made, and clients giving me their life stories as I stand in the rain for them to hand me their precious Fluffy who needs a nail trim. Basically your typical day in the life of a veterinary professional. The news of the day was that today we as a state would be shut down again because our Covid-19 numbers were getting too high and we needed to get the curves down again. So we went through our day with the worries of what today would bring. To be honest I know we are some of the lucky ones that get to stay open because the importance of keeping our pets healthy was seen as a reason to make us essential workers. For that I am thankful but I know what stress may be coming our way, and so I do my job and help the pets and I pray and try not to worry.

Today started out like most of my days, an early morning walk with the love of my life and my dog Jorj. It was a brisk walk to say the least and we went a way we haven’t gone in a while, you know to change it up a bit. Mistake! So normally on our walks we keep an eye out for loose dogs who may want to come after Jorj (it has happened to poor Jorj before), and normally we don’t see much of anything. Well today as we passed by this really pretty calico cat, she decided she would be the one, the one who finally got to Jorj. Let me tell you, she was persistent. We literally had to shove her away with our legs and even still she got to Jorj. We finally had to remove her from the situation almost getting bit ourselves, just to come head on with a herd of deer. I mean mommas and foals and even the buck, they stared us down like we were the devil. I was ready for the walk to be over, to be honest I wouldn’t have been surprised if a skunk jumped out to join the party. I went into pray mode again, praying that this wasn’t foretelling how the day was going to go.

With today being day one of the second round of shut downs because of Covid-19, I was expecting that it would be like the first round. I was wrong. It was like nothing changed. I went to work like normal, we still wore our masks, we still went out to get our patients from the cars, and we were still busy. The difference was that this time there wasn’t a panic in people’s voices, there was still toilet paper on the shelves, and businesses had a chance to make changes before the shutdown that made it so they could still work. I am sad that with it being my hubby’s birthday we didn’t invite friends over like normal but we still had his birthday dinner, cake and presents. We took the limitations given to us and we made them work. At this moment we are all at home, enjoying each other’s company, Covid-19 will be around for a while, so we take what we can do and we do it joyfully.

This is not so easy to do, to be honest if I were to sit here and really think about it I would start stressing and worrying instead of praying and finding the good in the situations. So it has become a choice for me to pray instead of worry, and find the good in the situations I am in. So with today, I actually had to giggle at the fact that this cat really thought she could go through with her plans of taking a chunk out of Jorj, I got to really see how pretty a small herd of deer could be and I could thank God that they didn’t see us as a threat. I got to work with some pretty awesome people, and see some really great clients and pets. The team I work with got a sweet treat from an equally sweet friend who just wanted to say thanks for what we do and that she loves us. I got to appreciate once again the power a cat had when she really doesn’t want to be held for a procedure, and use the tool of a radiograph to count unborn puppies.

I was able to celebrate with my hubby his 40+ birthday today and make him feel special with a yummy cake and gifts from the kids and I. I get to sit here and write while my son and hubby play games and the girls read and create. So yes, all around me there are so many things that can cause me to hide in a hole somewhere but if I let those things take over I would miss out on the joy around me. Being happy is one thing but to have joy, means you are at peace deep down, you are certain of who you are, and you know at the end of the day the only thing you can control is how you react to the things around you. I love being in control of some things, but I love even more knowing that I don’t have to be in control of all things, that is God’s job, and I for one am not about to take that away from Him. So where are you? How are you doing during these times? Are you stressed? Do you have an outlet that will help you get away for a little bit, and find your peace again? Do you have someone to talk to? I pray that you have a chance to just be, to find your peace, and that you won’t let round two of this shut down, shut you down too. Until next time:

Go find your joy. Whatever that is, go find your joy. Are you going to have a good day or are you going to have a great day? Because it’s completely up to you.

Sandra Bullock