Hey everyone!
How are you all? I hope you are doing okay.
Where I live, it's Day 10 of our community quarantine. The last day my kids went out was March 11 so they've been locked inside for 13 days. While they aren't that bored (my husband and I are introverts so we fully equipped our home to be an entertainment haven), they haven't had much sun and physical activity and that worries me. So this week we'll rev up our indoor exercises.
Anyway, I have a lot of drafts lined up to be published here on the blog. I have nothing to do since all my writing and PR work is now currently on hold, save for this recent and sadly personally relevant article I wrote for ANCx ["10 tough lessons freelancers have learned amidst the community quarantine"]. So I finally found the time to take photos of products to be reviewed, made a video of my daytime skincare, write on the blog... But I can't seem to publish them yet.
I understand that these are strange times we're living in. This time last month, my family was planning a beach trip and summer classes. We were shopping for tropical-themed outfits and tools for building sandcastles. And now we're indoors 'til we don't know when. Just when the weather is so gloriously beautiful, we can't go outside to enjoy it. I am so profoundly grateful our problems are just that. Everywhere else in the world, people are trying to get to work, trying to pay the bills when there's suddenly no work, trying not to get sick, trying not to die.
So I feel a bit strange to publish blog posts that are now so trivial in the face of this COVID-19 pandemic the whole world is facing. Part of me says this is the best time to write about silly things, to take our mind off from the horror of the sickness and how our government is responding to it. I'm not a medical expert, nor a political commentator, an economist, or a spiritual guide. So maybe I won't be very useful at this time, but please know that I want to share with you the stuff I've been doing, watching and reading when I'm not freaking out about our politicians. I need the mental break from all the shit that's happening in the world. If you feel the same way, I hope this is a place you can go to.
Life may be chaotic now but I cling to the hope that things will get better. I don't know when that better time will be but for now, I am grateful I have my family around me, safe and healthy. I wish every single one of us can say the same thing but I am bleakly aware this is not the case. So, dearest Loyal Readers, please pray with me for our doctors, nurses, hospital staff and crew, scientists, delivery people, guards, janitors, supermarket personnel, the people who work in food and service establishments, policemen, soldiers, the people who live on a daily wage, and yes, even for our government. We need to support all of them through donations and prayer.
From all of us in my family, we hope you and your loved ones stay safe and healthy.
Frances
P.S. Here are links to old blog posts that may be relevant at this time:
Since we have 3 more weeks to go (fingers crossed!) in this lockdown, I'll try to come up with fresh content that you may still find useful but won't be health-related. Things like tips on working from home, for example! If you have any requests for topics, please leave a comment below or send an email to frances@topazhorizon.com. Thanks, everyone!
Hi mommy Frances! I hope you publish those 'trivial' blog posts�� Looking forward to it! Minsan po kasi parang nakakatuwa din makabasa ng something trivial kahit nasa gitna ng covid crisis. Sense of normalcy kahit paano. In my opinion�� -your humble loyal reader since 2010��✌
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