Still alive.
This is life, for now.
But if the world was going to slow us down,
we would not let it stop us.
My wife and I consciously started to learn new things.
I began formally studying a new language.
Slowly.
I opened books I had been postponing for years.
A backlog I always meant to finish
“when things calmed down.”
Things never really do.
So now was the time.
In the kitchen, my wife was learning too.
She learned how to bake.
Tried new dishes.
How to follow recipes.
How to adjust when something went wrong.
While the world felt unstable,
we were building skills at home.
Quietly upgrading ourselves.
Without announcements.
Without applause.
Just effort.
Because whenever this finally ends.
We will meet people again.
Sit across from friends.
Share meals.
Someone will ask,
“How have you been?”
And we don’t want to say,
“Same.”
We want to say,
"Changed. Improved."
“Learned something."
“We grew."
Not to impress.
But to be honest.
Because this season costs too much
to be wasted.
It takes our freedom.
Our routines.
Our certainty.
So we choose to take something back.
So when the doors open again,
we will not just step outside.
We will carry something with us.
And say that quarantine was not wastes
We made it count.