Typically, my Labour Day posts reflect thoughts around workers rights and working safely – topics that are now even more important than ever before  –  but today I’ll admit to feeling a little bit selfish. As I ponder thoughts about Labour Day, sipping my morning coffee,  all I can think about is how much I miss what I do.  I miss the cheers and the tears.  I miss the “check in complete” notification on my Air Canada app and emptying out my creams and liquids from my purse at security.  I miss the feeling of a new energy sparked within me, no matter how long the flight, the moment I grab my luggage and step out in a new city.  I miss sharing stories.  Most of all – I miss you.  

When we take a little time to allow ourselves to sit and “miss” anything or anyone – the upside is that we are reminded of just how much we loved what is no longer.  I am filled with gratitude that I love my work as much as I do, and I remain optimistic, always, especially during this pandemic that what is now missing will soon return – but, in the meantime?  Pivot. Pivot. Pivot.  

What has this unprecedented time allowed you to explore or create?  I have taken this time to work on the video series I have wanted to develop for years.  The book I have always wanted to write is coming along – slowly but very surely, and don’t even get me started on my “starter” – my sourdough game is strong!  But, we are humans.  We need interaction –  to connect.  While the abrupt “stop work order” on my travel certainly threw me for a loop, I am doing my best to enjoy the extended time on the ground.   Isn’t that what we’re all trying to do right now?  Make lemonade – more likely to be spiked, as of late ? 

I don’t have children, and I’m not going anywhere anytime soon, yet still I am constantly tuned into the news that is flooded with talk of return to school and return to work.  Discussions around safety,   trust, and risk have me feeling that I have more to say than ever before about safety and our responsibility to one another – to protect each other.  Considering the fact that I feel like I have so much I want to share with you, it’s also painfully obvious to me that I’m going to need to get comfortable with speaking from a different stage.  

If you see something, heck yes, say something!

The world we’re trying to work through and in, is one we’ve never seen before.  While the hazards and risks of just simply existing have drastically changed, the message remains the same. 

• If you see something, heck yes, SAY SOMETHING!  We are living in a world where not wearing simple PPE could easily and actually kill our loved ones #wearadamnmask
• Keep your guard up!  If there are no cases where you live, then all the more reason to play a small but extremely significant part in keeping it that way.  
• Lead by example – I’ve caught myself heading down the grocery store aisle against the arrow to grab something I forgot, and I’ve stopped to remind myself of this one more than once!  I’m human, we all are, but with no end in sight to this way of life we have to work to stay disciplined. 

So today, tomorrow and for the foreseeable future,  I will work from home with feelings of deep gratitude towards anyone and everyone out there on the front lines working to keep us safe.  I will work on staying optimistic, while keeping those who have suffered great loss in my heart and prayers.  I will work on practising patience, knowing how fortunate I am to have a safe place to weather the storm.   I will work on trusting the universe, and myself – knowing that this isn’t the first time my life feels like it’s been turned on its side, and it won’t be the last. I will do what it takes to continue to do the work that I love – work that fuels my soul and my spirit.  Last, but not least, I will work on figuring out how to make sure you don’t forget that your safety remains my priority…  even if my stage has turned into a sofa.

Pivot. Pivot. Pivot.