I guide growth-inspired women to cycle through the seasons by living in alignment with realistic expectations of their time and energy one week at a time.
GIRLetter #018: Overcoming the Pandemic Funk
"Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much"
-Helen Keller
Hey GIRL (that’s you, our Grace In the Race Ladies):
So this happened...
Me (to my boys): Guys, I could use a hug.
Them: Why?
Me: I don't know... I'm just... (sighs, shrugs shoulders)
The younger, fashion-conscious one: Is it because you're wearing socks with sandals?
Me: (looks at feet)... (sighs again)
Yeah, that happened. I got called out on a fashion violation by my eleven-year-old son. And let us not gloss over the fact that he did not hesitate in recognizing that the infraction was so clearly a call for help.
Have any of you felt like you're in a funk lately?
I pride myself on my having a well-equipped tool kit specifically designed to fight funk and yet, lately, the funk keeps creeping back up to bring me down. Now, this is not to be confused with getting down to a funky-funky beat... in fact, that's perhaps the way out of any given funk.
(Note to self: schedule dance party).
No, it's more like the bathtub started to drip and I just sat there watching it fill. It is now overflowing and I'm trying to use those cheap gas-station-restroom paper towels to clean it up, but instead, I'm just pushing the mess around.
Alas, I'm not giving up. Despite the funk, I feel grateful to recognize that the important thing is to KEEP. MOVING. FORWARD!
I attribute much of what I'm feeling to the current state of the world with a small, but notable, portion credited to my 28-day challenge. Yep, the old cycle is at it again. When will she learn that we play for the same team? She's putting up a fight but I'm not letting her win (see: recently scheduled dance party). I'm mustering all the positive energy I can to overcome the funk amidst "the challenge"... Oh, and I'm taking naps and walks and baths when necessary, like at 11:30 am on a Wednesday, because that's OK. It's all okay... we just have to keep moving forward.
The good news is that I really am making progress. I'm getting through it by seeking grace in community.
Amanda and I founded this passion project on the premise of wanting to help other moms. It's not playing out exactly like we thought it would. We envisioned helping moms coordinate the chaos of everyday life such as parenting over-scheduled kids, meal-planning for busy families, encouraging date nights for couples who've become ships in the night, creating cleaning schedules for families who fly in and out of the house like a tornado most days and offering self-care tips for sherpa-chauffeur-moms who've mastered the art of sprinting on a hamster wheel while wearing rollerskates... all the things that vanished into thin air, overnight, three grueling months ago. Now, I barely wear shoes let alone roller skates... and (sigh) have resorted to wearing socks with sandals.
Instead, Grace in the Race is evolving into a community of women - mainly moms - who provide support to one another by capitalizing on their strengths to lift each other up. Simultaneously, those same women are getting vulnerable to identify their own brand of chaos and seek support from one another - myself included, and by included I mean I'm first in line. Did I mention the funk... and the sandals... with socks? HELP!
We are committed to bringing this community together by providing resources that will help all of us thrive in Wellness, Productivity, Personal growth, Family, Home, and Awareness. Grace is at the root of it all and the thing that will see us through the funk - well, grace and Netflix, if I may speak for Amanda.
This summer we're launching a new way to be in community with one another and we're very excited to share it with you! Stay tuned for announcements hitting inboxes and social media very soon!
We hope you enjoy this issue. All of this week's resources are founded in community and anti-funk mastery. If anything speaks to you, hit reply and let us know or engage with us in our Facebook community.
Thank you for being here. Enjoy the rest of your weekend and may it kick off an extraordinary week!
Love & Grace,
Rachel (& Amanda)
Co-founders of Grace in the Race, LLC
p.s. We hope our weekly newsletter positively impacts you and inspires you to give yourself (and others) grace. If so, hit reply and drop us a note to let us know. Additionally, we invite you to forward it to a friend and encourage her to subscribe as well!
Grace in all things...
GRACE IN FAMILY
- Amanda's son has been back to playing baseball for a few weeks and it is the only part of life that feels normal! Returning to sports feels scary, exciting, and everything in between. If your child is getting back into summer sports, check out Project Play, an organization that develops, applies, and shares knowledge to help you interact with your 'sports community'. They offer webinars and other resources for returning to play in a safe way as well as other relatable topics!
GRACE IN WELLNESS
- In case it's your first one... pandemics can be stressful! It may sound obvious but if your mind is reeling because you don't recognize yourself right now, you're not alone and it's OK! Coping with stress in a healthy way will make you, the people you care about, and your community stronger (CDC.org). This article from the CDC highlights how you can take care of yourself and your community knowing that everyone reacts differently to stressful situations. If you haven't yet responded to the memes all over social media, this is a good time to check-in on your friends and loved ones... they may have resorted to wearing socks with sandals.
GRACE IN PRODUCTIVITY (NEW NAME!)
- We're gearing up for a Productivity series on overcoming procrastination. We'll be working from the book Eat That Frog! by Brian Tracy. The book outlines 21 ways to stop procrastinating and get more done! Pick up the book and workbook today and click the button below to join the waitlist to receive more information about this FREE virtual series.
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GRACE IN GROWTH
- Grace in growth isn't always graceful, yet, it shouldn't embody disgrace either. It may come as a surprise to hear us say this but sometimes we do our best growing when we disagree with grace. At Grace in the Race, we're committed to having hard conversations to spread love and peace to our community. The following excerpt is from the article "9 tips for talking to people you disagree with". It offers nine rules of engagement to tackle tough conversations.
There’s value in having conversations with people you don’t necessarily see eye-to-eye with. You might evolve your perspective on a topic. You might bolster your argument for why you disagree. You might learn something new about your conversation partner. And when we’re respecting one another and acting like grown-ups, such conversations can be really interesting.
GRACE AT HOME
- We're just one week away from Independence Day! Do you have plans to gather with friends or loved ones in your community for a backyard BBQ? If so, check out this article, How to have friends over this summer — safely.
GRACE IN AWARENESS
- This past week, Austin Channing Brown, speaker, author, and fellow Metro-Detroiter sent a powerful email to her online subscribers. "I am wholly uninterested in a conversation about unity that’s not rooted in the unrelenting pursuit of racial justice." Her message provided a lesson in awareness that there exists a very real, thriving mentality that is unified against justice and we have a responsibility to do something about it. Subscribe to Austin Channing Brown's Roll Call HERE.
- Full transparency... I'm about to get vulnerable... For some reason, which I find difficult to put my finger on, that last bullet point made me squirm in my seat a little... cue the flood of discomfort... It's when I know the forward progress is working; but dang if it isn't hard! So, here's what I did about it: 1) I took a deep breath, 2) I googled racial justice, 3) I read. I "listened." I learned. I felt my discomfort being replaced by understanding... There's a lot of deep stuff out there; upon much of which I've barely scratched the surface. I'm often drawn to the articles that are "for kids" because they give me tools to teach my own kids but if I'm being honest, I like them because they are basic and meet me where I'm at on some of this stuff. This image, for example, was very helpful for me:
GracePace: Sensible Solutions
FAVORITES OF THE WEEK . . .
Podcast: The Way We Live Now with Dani Shapiro. This podcast airs intimate conversations with people from all walks of life about how they’re coping — and managing to stay connected.
Book: Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead by Brene Brown.
Book & Podcast Episode: I got into a meaningful yet admittedly squirmy conversation with a loved one recently. In the end, she asked me for a book recommendation to help broaden her perspective. While I don't have all the answers (not even close), these two resources were a great start for me - Charles Duhigg - How to Fight Racism in Your Neighborhood (podcast) with Ijeoma Oluo, author of So, You Want To Talk About Race (book).
Video/Blog Post: Snap out of the funk with a dance party! Here's how: How to Host a Virtual Dance Party on Zoom. This blog post provides step-by-step instructions should you feel moved to get your groove on but even if you're not the dance-party type, take 58 seconds to watch the video below. It will make you smile and smiling is the first step to overcoming the pandemic funk!
The Grace Experiment
THE SUMMER CHALLENGE: CONQUER A MICRO-HABIT
Spend your summer being your favorite YOU. What habit would you change to be the best version of yourself? Start with a really small one - a micro-habit - and share your progress with us in The Grace Experiment!
LISTEN: KwikBrain with Jim Kwik - Podcast Episode #182 - Tiny Habit to Change Your Life With Dr. BJ Fogg
Shop
Masks by Mihaela are available for purchase on our website: Mihaela Cobb is making and selling face masks. For every mask purchased, she donates one. Masks by Mihaela are available for purchase here.
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Rachel Antone
Capacity Coach
I guide growth-inspired women to cycle through the seasons by living in alignment with realistic expectations of their time and energy one week at a time.
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