Editor’s Note: The Interim asked a number of families from across Canada to tell us how they remain positive and what they are doing to cope with the pandemic and lockdowns.

Up (to) the creek

They say each cloud has a silver lining … a little glimpse of light to remind us that the sun has not completely disappeared but is still there behind that seemingly daunting darkness. Sometimes during a storm, you will see a rainbow, though you can’t see that rainbow unless somewhere, there is rain. You have to look up; look through the rain and the wind to find it. It’s safe to say that this storm-cloud known as COVID-19 dropped a lot of rain everywhere on earth, affecting millions in many devastating ways. But we have found that all is not lost. A lot has been gained through this storm. I will share with you how amidst this pandemic with all the dark clouds it has brought, we have found our silver lining. Our hope is that everyone going through this storm, can find theirs too.

Our family has four young kids. My husband works as an international pilot, so his work would often take him away from us for days at a time. With travel being drastically reduced, he has been able to spend a lot more time at home with the family. That became a huge lifesaver as we suddenly had to learn to navigate virtual education from home, with, naturally, all of us being home together, all the time. We quickly discovered that we needed to get outside the four walled confines of our house. Where to? Anywhere. But everywhere was closed. Well, not everywhere. A beautiful creek that is a 15-minute walk from our house turned out to be a real treasure for us. Filled with life within and around it, that little creek offered us endless adventures, fresh air, and exercise, a destination where we could enjoy God’s creation: biking or scooting there, catching minnows, looking for wildlife, skipping rocks and just being together.

Another wonderful outcome of this COVID storm is that we began creating new habits that previously we had a hard time fostering with the busyness of life. We started to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet daily as a family, every evening. We continue to prioritize prayer as a family whereas previously it was sporadic and only if it fit into our schedules. We have become more aware of what is truly important in life. It continues to be difficult weathering this storm at times and there are many challenges ahead before it is over. But we have found that it’s not about filling up our lives with material things and busy schedules. We’ve learned to make time for prayer together, to pause and observe the beauty of nature, and to find joy in the simple things of life. And always practice gratitude; for even when the sun is being covered up by a dark cloud, we can still see glimpses of it shining through.

Ewa Mountain lives in Newcastle, Ont.

Return to simpler life

These are indeed difficult times. From our point of view, a relatively mild pandemic is being used as a pretext to strangle the middle and working classes and institute godless, churchless, worldwide socialism. The arguably most pro-life US president in history has just been thrown out of office in very dubious circumstances. And chaos and darkness reign in many parts of the human element of the Church. But all this has but strengthened our family life: the lockdowns have forced us to notice we have neighbours, and to meet with them, something we rarely ever did before. We have begun raising small animals (quails, rabbits) and have begun growing a lot of our own food, baking our own bread, even brewing our own beer and wine. Though we homeschooled our children even before the lockdowns, we now pray and catechize them more intensely, knowing that our hope doesn’t lie in this world, but with Jesus Christ in the next. We’ve realized that we’ve under-appreciated the power and graces flowing from family life, and the good that we can do right around us, in our home and in our neighborhood.

George Buscemi lives in Montreal. 

Gratitude

Two and a half years ago, my husband and I moved to Alberta to be close to three daughters and their families. When COVID-19 restrictions became stricter, I wondered what kind of Christmas we would have. What I discovered was that Jesus is the reason for the season, not Christmas decorations or a tree or gifts or family gatherings. Despite what Hallmark movies or commercials say, the rest of the trappings are just the way we celebrate Christmas. We focused on the Baby in a manger, surrounded by poor shepherds and Magi, and the “trappings” reflected those instead.

I felt led to reach out to the people in our church who do ministries that no one sees, such as the flowers, cleaning vestments, building and maintenance, with cards of gratitude for their services. It was also important, I felt, to include the homebound (because of age or illness), to thank them for their years of service to the parish community. If it wasn’t for their prayers and sacrifices, we probably wouldn’t have the parish today. Of course, we still exchanged gifts with our family and cookies with the neighbors, but not in person. Instead of solitude, we were surrounded by love and gratitude.

Maria Killoran lives in Olds, Alberta.

Finding peace

I was raised in British Columbia by my parents, Heather and Bill Stilwell. If you knew them, you might have a good idea as to how we were raised: to never give up and to have faith always. My late mother-in-law Denise Hounjet-Roth, likewise, with her husband Louis Roth, raised my husband, Jon, in the same way. As the new year came in, we felt our family needed to find something we could prioritize to keep our home a sacred place of joy and faith for our children. We decided on peace for the year of 2021: peace was going to be the priority for our family. Here in Saskatoon, we have been able to ensure we get outside and spend time together in nature, admiring God’s glory. Our children run into our bed first thing every morning listening to us read our morning prayers and Bible. We avoid losing our tempers when we’re stressed and apologize right away when we do. We focus on the things we can control and ultimately leave it God to take care of the rest. Choosing joy and love in our everyday tasks — this will give us hope for the year ahead.

Liz Roth lives in Saskatoon. 

New discoveries

This COVID time has brought much joy in discovering my children in a new way: reading to them and not being limited to “just one chapter;” taking more time to play games and just be goofy together; having my daughter be able to be actively involved in our little farm and becoming passionate about animals; and my son being able to spend hours on our outdoor rink, working on skills and practicing.

This time has brought much-needed moments of spontaneous personal prayer; practicing the ability of letting go and trusting in God; forgiveness and acceptance of individual opinions; and learning to make opportunity for daily personal and family prayer.

This time has taught me to find joy and beauty in everyday, ordinary tasks; to encourage self-care through exercise and rest; and stimulating the mind with new books and games.

This time has most of all given me a chance to step back a little and refocus: what needs to change when things open up again and how can I be the change that I want to see?

Theresa Templeton lives in Olds, Alberta.

Thankful for opportunities

Although it presented many challenges, the pandemic has also been a blessing. It has given us the opportunity to become closer as a family. The lockdowns started two months after we had our fifth child and my husband, a pilot, lost his job at the end of March. With both of us off work and our children home from school, we had a lot of time together. We spent our summer camping and exploring the beautiful province of Nova Scotia. We would camp for five or six days, come home for two days to do laundry and get groceries, and then head out again. We did family bike rides together, breath-taking hikes, cliff jumping, and berry picking. We spent endless hours at the beaches playing in the ocean. We swam, boogie-boarded and paddle-boarded together. In bad weather we played board games and did Pokemon battles. It was a summer like no other. One that childhood memories are made of.

When the kids went back to school, my husband started working at our local church. He is working at a job that he absolutely loves. Never in our wildest dreams did either of us imagine him doing missionary work. This has helped us to grow spiritually as a family and delve deeper into our faith. When I look back on 2020, I will remember it as one of the best years of my life. A gift from God of time: time with my family, a chance to re-evaluate my priorities. Time to slow down and explore the beauty He has created for me, for us.

Tess Morris lives in Halifax.

Maintaining a sense of humour

My wife Ginny, and I were on a spring vacation when our family, concerned about the possibility of us becoming quarantined, urged us to (excuse the expression) “abort” our holiday and get home. Fears over the pandemic and fierce political reports from the United States became a daily concern. But, despite all that is going on around us, with the cessation of essential church services and the challenge of being unable to visit locked-down relatives and friends, inability to attend weddings and funerals, we’ve managed to find new ways forward. 

Wednesdays of the summer months and early Fall were spent golfing with my children and grandkids. Despite the lockdowns, my wife and I go for daily leisurely walks along the boardwalk which stretches from the Scarborough Bluffs to the Beach area along the north shore of Lake Ontario.  On one such day, we encountered a beautiful young woman (you could see her smiling eyes above her mask) walking her cute cocker spaniel. She stopped to allow two elderly ladies to pat the dog and coo over how cute it was. The young woman passed us, only to be confronted by three teen girls squealing about the cute dog. The young woman and dog passed by again but were stopped by a senior couple. “Isn’t she beautiful?” asked the woman. Passing by, I said “She sure is beautiful and the dog is pretty cute too!” My wife struck me on the shoulder. I guess I should have called the seniors abuse hotline, but there would have been repercussions.

I continue my CLC work from home and listen to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. We try to maintain our sense of humour with the help of our family and friends. 

Jim Hughes lives in Toronto.