Life is just full of surprises. An unexpected visit by a dear friend, a ‘just because’ gift, a thank-you note for an act you thought went unnoticed – these are all pleasant surprises. We love them. They warm our hearts and brighten our days. Then, there are the not so great surprises – the mammogram callback, the spouse who announces he wants out or the job loss you never saw coming. Days rarely go exactly as planned. That is why buffer time is so critical when scheduling appointments or traveling to events. That is why patience and flexibility help us get through the unexpected times. But, all things considered, we want predictable. We want our days to go as planned. We want to do what we want when we want. We want normal.
As we said goodbye to 2019 and welcomed 2020, many spoke of the incoming year using an optometrist’s lens (pun intended) – 2020 vision. Perfect vision (2020) means no need for corrective lenses, no straining to see the fine print, no adjustments in body position are needed. So as individuals talked about 2020 being the year of vision, I understood most to be speaking of clarity relative to pursuit of goals. I believe 2020 vision referred to actions that would result in completion of monumental tasks and achievement of dreams. In a sense, it was movement away from the normal of 2019 and the preceding years to the crisp clear vision of 2020.
Then came a worldwide pandemic – coronavirus! Suddenly, nothing was normal. It was as if the world stopped in the blink of an eye. One day we were going wherever we wanted to eat out, the next day all restaurants were closed. One day we were complaining about rush hour traffic, the next day we were working from home. One day we gave little thought to our own mortality, the next day we were wondering about our virus vulnerability and grieving the growing death toll. Normal was gone. Zoom meetings, virtual worship, drive-by celebrations, online education – this is now normal. It’s not the normal we want, but it’s the normal we have. We are no longer surprised to see people wearing face masks. We expect people to greet without hugging. We expect others to stay 6 feet from us. Normal has changed. As we long for what was, for what we look back and refer to as normal, we must choose to make the most of each day God gives. We must choose to embrace each day with gratitude, with clear vision of how much we have for which to give thanks. Longing for normal? Today is our normal.