In my last post, I mentioned that it is springtime here in the Pacific Northwest, which means my environment is in bloom – despite the pandemic.

I love that image because it illustrates the concept that there are always beautiful things in our environment, no matter what else is going on and regardless of whether or not we have the wherewithal to notice them. We are trapped and scared and lost, yet growth and beauty persist.

If you haven’t heard the phrase “collateral beauty“, first go watch the movie of the same name. Second, it is exactly what it sounds like: a wonderful unintended consequence of an action or situation. I would bet that every single situation has collateral beauty in one way or another, and our current environment is no exception.

That’s going to mean a lot of different things for different people, but for me it is something quite subtle.

It’s the friends I’m connecting with more as I check in on everyone. It’s the strangers who smile back at me, instead of glancing warily at me per usual, as I pass them on a run. It’s the daily lunches and walks I’m sharing with my parents, which I wouldn’t usually have time for. It’s the neighbor’s pink cherry blossom tree that I can’t help but admire.

The coronavirus is spreading out of survival. It is not spreading in hopes that people will connect more or appreciate their surroundings more. These are unintended consequences brought about by an extremely unique combination of circumstances. Their genesis however does not change their awesomeness.

Their awesomeness also doesn’t change the fact that we would prefer not to have a global pandemic. It doesn’t change our sacrifices, our fear, or our loss. The tricky part that I think we all tend to forget though, is that we can actually have both.

We can have the uncertainty and the beauty. We can have the worry and the appreciation.

Neither is more important than the other. So as you make sure to give yourself time and compassion to be frustrated or upset or scared, also make sure you take the time to admire, to be amazed, to be in awe.

There are some things we do need to wait on, such as travel or long-term plans, until we have more information, more data, and more safety. But just because our planning is on hold doesn’t mean our living should be on hold, too.

Life is too short for us to wait for it to be what we want it to be. Our environment may change in and out of a pandemic (among other things), but as the spring blooms remind us, everything else will continue moving forward.

No matter what hemisphere you’re in or what latitude you’re on, I am telling you: your environment is in bloom, despite the pandemic. All you have to do is look around and notice it.