We spent so much time in our house and backyard, and ultimately felt really lucky to have the outdoor space and set up that we had. I remember feeling so panicked to find out that we were going to have to spend "two weeks" at home with our two kids, aged 3 and 5 at the time. I wasn't sure what we would do without the routine of school and without the ability to go out into the world. It was genuinely hard to sort out at first, and then we got into a rhythm. It felt really difficult as we moved through it, but we had some of the most special, beautiful times together as a family. We all look back on that time with so much love and affection, in part because of the age of the kids, and in part because of all the forced togetherness. We had a lot of fear of the unknown at the time, and now that things are more stabilized it's easier to look back on the time fondly. That was a real lesson, to try to enjoy these moments, even when they feel hard. We gained some unity as a family, and we lost time with relatives and friends who were farther away. We didn't think it made sense to risk flying in the summer of 2020 so we decided to drive from California to the midwest to be with family, seeing so much of the country along the way. We never would have done that drive, and we liked it so much we did it again a couple more times. I lost my godmother, and we all lost our sense of safety and stability. But I can't forget that we weirdly gained a lot too.

Hannah

Los Angeles, CA