By Amie Mignatti
As our theme this month is “Living the Displaced Life,” it seems appropriate to speak about our time during this global pandemic. As expats, our lives are already displaced due to living apart from our family of origins, our circle of friends, and our countries. Presently, our lives have become even more displaced due to the extreme measures we’ve found ourselves under during the past several months.
We’ve had to completely change our daily structures and routines and even more, our mentalities. We’ve had to stay home with our children and create new structures and routines. Some of us have had to work while taking care of our children, perhaps dealing with ways to home-school them while getting our work duties completed at the same time. Some of us have had to deal with our partner doing home-office while the children have been home at the same time, which has required a great deal of flexibility and scheduling. It has not been an easy time, regardless of the position we’ve found ourselves in.
How have we dealt, individually, with these changes? For some of us it has been extremely challenging, for others it’s been not much different than our previous reality, yet it has most likely been an emotional roller coaster ride. There has been fear, sadness, anger, and, hopefully, some joy. Were you able to make a peaceful transition to this time or was it a bumpy and rocky road to find some sort of stability and normality?
Change is inevitable. It is the only constant. We have the power to weather these changes with grace or with thunderstorms. Most of us have left our country of origin to settle in a place with a different culture and a different language. We’ve learned how to live being displaced from all that we once knew and we’ve learned how to create our environment in a way that feels good and makes us thrive. We’ve learned to live without previous comforts and have traded them different ones. As expats, we have the tools we need to change and to feel whole within these changes.
Were we able to do this, again, when in the face of something much different and darker? Were we able to once again dig deep within ourselves to find ways to nourish our families and ourselves? Perhaps this time around we didn’t equate the changes that we were forced to make as similar to those changes that we made when we moved to Germany. Yet, they are quite similar. The way we handle change is universal, regardless of the situation.
We are now at the point where things are returning to the way they once were, but they are far from our old reality. We will not go back to that. We’ve stepped into a new world, a new way of living and a new way of doing things. Even though our lockdown period has ended, there is still great fear: that of economic uncertainty, job security, our health and community’s health, and the way in which we move through life. We have been displaced and are now living in a new and different reality, one in which we must define our own lives within.
If this has been a difficult time for you, ask yourself what it is that you need to make it easier. Make a list of things that are hard right now and potential ways in which you can make them easier within the structure that we are given now. What will it take to make you feel good? The answers must not be “when things go back to normal,” but rather how you can work within the framework that is our new reality. Once you are clear about what is challenging and draining for you, then you can find ways to combat it. Perhaps it’s adding more structure to your day, finding friends to help you out, or taking more time for yourself (a walk alone, a hot bath at night, a good book, a chat with a friend, etc.).
Reflect on your time when you first moved here or a time when you were faced with a great challenge. How did you handle it then? What did you do to find balance and peace? Use the same techniques that have helped you ride the wave of change in the past, now. You have the answers and you alone hold the key to your own happiness. Happiness does not depend on outside people, places or events– it resides within you. You have the power to create your own reality in the way that you wish it to be. The most important thing is that you do not place importance on the idea of “when things change,” but work with what is before you in the present.
I wish for each of us that we are able to tap into our innate power, our ability to adapt to situations presented to us and to use our past to define our present. Believe in yourself and trust the process. Even a slight shift in our perception can act as a catalyst to change the way we live our lives. Change does not happen overnight, but by taking steps towards making things better and smoother, we are on our way to living a life that makes us feel balanced, alive and free.
Amie Mignatti
Amie Mignatti is committed to bringing children and adults into the outdoors, so that they can learn new skills, feel at home in nature, and be in a space where they can connect more deeply with themselves. She is confident that more time spent outdoors can lead to a healthier and calmer life, a more positive attitude and a never ending sense of wonder. She is happiest when she and her family are in the forest around the campfire with good friends. She leads courses and retreats for all ages.