It’s Deb…

Like you, I’ve been following the crisis related to Covid-19, the Coronavirus that has affected the world and left the majority of us feeling uncertain about what to expect in the weeks and months to follow. It’s unsettling, to say the least.

Also like you, I’ve been taking precautions to keep germs at bay by wiping down surfaces in my home and washing my hands so often that my fingers are cracked and raw. I’m doing my best to remain calm and level-headed while checking on my mother and 96-year-old Grandmother to make sure they have what they need to follow the CDC’s recommendation of social distancing. I stocked up on a week’s worth of groceries myself, along with extra frozen pizzas (and the new Panera Bread soups now sold in groceries!) for my college kid who was told to turn in his dorm key and participate in online instruction for the next 4 weeks.

Of course, extra time with family, such as my college freshman, high schooler and teacher-husband, is the good in this chaos. We will no doubt be spending more quality time together during our self-quarantine period. We will also be cooking at home more, rather than relying on the occasional DoorDash or dining out, all good things that I know we should have been doing before.

Yet, I still feel a little unsettled.

No one likes change, especially when we don’t know what the future holds, or when life as we knew it will return to normal. No one embraces having things we once enjoyed be cancelled or postponed. It creates stress and frustration.

It times of change, we naturally turn to things we love to provide a sense of relief or some peace to our ever-changing world. For me personally, I find a release through writing. The activity brings me satisfaction and allows me to press the pause button on our fast-paced world. Putting thoughts to paper can help settle your mind. Something else that helps?

Music.

Listening to music can affect the mind and body in powerful ways. As listeners of WFMS, this is probably no big surprise. Country music is notorious for its storytelling and ability to connect us to positive experiences in our past. So yesterday, as I tackled a long list of household chores, I popped in my headphones and listened to my favorite song list. Not only did it help pass the time, the mix of familiar songs as well as new ones like Chris Janson’s, ‘Done,’ was a temporary remedy to all of the stress related to Covid-19. Even music from my teenaged years (Christina Aguilera’s ‘Genie in a Bottle,’ anyone?) that I save for running on the treadmill brought a smile to my face. It also may have been the inspiration for my newly organized closet, which will be in disarray again a week from now, but hey, I tried.

Change is difficult for many of us, and not everyone likes uncertainty. However, we all like music. It’s what brings us together and made you a part of our WFMS family.

Jim, Kevin and I will be with you during these changing days, along with the music that you love, and we hope to provide comfort when you’re feeling most frazzled.

~Deborah Honeycutt