Last week, I eluded to the emotional roller coaster I was going through and wanted to write about it because it caused an epiphany in me that has given this whole situation a brighter outlook. At some point among the school buildings closing and TCF Center (it will forever be COBO in my heart) transformed into a makeshift hospital, my anxiety hit a high.

The place I worked with the news and even found our beloved family pet Mardi, was now an eerie rows of beds, I broke. The notion that sooner than later every one of those beds would be filled with people fighting to breath. It’s heartbreaking enough but then to learn the next relief site was going to be a mile from my house. Down the street from my kid’s preschool, it’s so heavy to bare. My anxiety was like a grey cloud looming over me wherever I went.

I couldn’t shake it and started thinking. Especially about my baby’s milestones going un-witnessed and the diminished joy of her first holidays, like Easter, without meeting the Easter bunny. Which made me revisit last year. I spent the morning struggling, pregnant, to get two preschoolers dressed nicely. We went to the mall at opening and found a two and a half hour wait to meet the Easter Bunny. We left and rerouted for my friend Rachel’s, who was hosting a play date. I threatened my kids on the way in to not eat anything, as to not mess up their clothes, because the bunny was still happening. Half of the play date I checked my phone profusely looking for reservations or tips on who’s been where and had a good result. My friend Jen had text me that she was at the mall and the line wasn’t bad, maybe a half hour, and she’d save us a spot. So, I begrudgingly pulled the kids from their friends, packed them in the car begging for snacks, and floored it up to the mall. I jumped in what looked like a shorter line but it was definitely longer than 30 minutes because, as it turns out, Jen was at a different mall… I waited my hour, paid way too much for the visit, and took home pictures I haven’t looked at again since.

THIS is what I was missing? THIS is what I’ve been upset about and pondering how I could fix this year to supply some normalcy and tradition into our lives? Guess what, my kids haven’t even said a word about going to see the Easter Bunny, they couldn’t care less. What I wouldn’t give to get back those hours of free playing with friends or visit my grandma instead of partaking in a ritual that apparently no one cared about.

This is perspective my friends. An ‘ah ha’ moment of what I was putting weight into that was, in hindsight, completely superfluous. These realizations have made this situation all the more bearable. Sure, there are things that we’re mourning– graduation, weddings, birthdays, school, little league – and that’s okay. But really take this time to reevaluate and refocus your lives. Are the ‘extremely important things you’re missing’ really that important? Does your schedule need to be that busy? What would you rather do right now, go see the Easter Bunny or share a cup of coffee with your friend?

These are some questions I’ve been asking myself and I’m making some changes in my attitude and redesigning what I want in the near future.

You may not be able to control or change the circumstance set upon you. You do have the power to change what you do with this time and what your life will look at when this is through. This may be the only time in your life where the slate is wiped clean and you draw whatever future you desire.