“It was the Best of times; it was the Worst of times …”

So begins the classic novel written by Charles Dickens in 1859. It was a book set during the Reign of Terror, leading up to and including the French Revolution. It dealt with human struggle. It dealt with social injustice and great darkness. It dealt with fear and loss, death and survival, darkness and light. It is widely considered Dickens’ greatest work and is one of the best-selling classic works of all time.

2020. It is the Best of times … It is the Worst of times. It is the year we have been quarantined in our homes. It is the year international travel stopped and Walt Disney World shut down. It is the year businesses sent workers away from their offices to work remotely. It is the year we found ourselves separated from loved ones and people we care about. It is the year the phrase “Social Distancing” was coined. It is the year sporting teams, theaters and movie houses locked their doors and cancelled events, games and performances. It is the year fitness studios began hosting virtual exercise classes. It is the year we downloaded Zoom onto our electronic devices — the year Zoom became more than a zany 1970’s kids show on PBS. It is the year awareness and outrage about Social Injustice at long last prompted action. It is the year our youth and college students began “on-line learning,” attending school and college classes at home.

It is the year we began wearing masks.

2020 — from all social media postings and professional commentary — is the Worst of Times. Social Distancing and Masks are the new normal. Many aspects of our society are still shut down. Sporting events continue but without fans in the stands. While we can visit spas and eat in restaurants, seating is limited and people must wear masks and have their temperatures taken to enter. Protests and riots rage across the country, bringing to the surface years of anger and resentment — years of injustice due to the color of a person’s skin. People rise up … but we struggle to find a cohesive plan and voice to finally make that change. The political scene is building up for wild ride before the November election. And, the U.S. unemployment rate is at its highest since the Great Depression. One article I read posted that over 22 million people have lost their jobs as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic.

I am one of them.

Like those moments in history considered the “worst” of times that so many of us remember vividly — such as the Kennedy Assassination and the World Trade Center bombings — we all can recall where we were on March 12 when the NBA cancelled its season. We can recall that last dinner out before restaurants closed, the last friend we hugged as we said our goodbyes after a night out or our last workout inside the walls of a fitness studio. We can all recall the stay at home orders and the moment when 6 feet of separation became our reality.

Yet … in “A Tale of Two Cities,” Dickens combined the sentiment. He said it was the Best of Times and the Worst of Times. And he began with “the Best” … not, “the Worst” in his famous opening sentence. That structure gives me hope and challenges me to look at these times in a different light.

During this Worst of Times there are still some Best of moments. And during a Reign of Terror like we’re experiencing right now, we need to bring those Best ofs into to the forefront of our thinking.

The community theatre I perform with shut down. But I was in a fabulous show only a few months before the doors were closed. I appreciated the experience and people then. I appreciate that I had that experience and creative opportunity even more now.

My yoga studio locked its doors … but, the Virtual classes they now offer have introduced me to new teachers I would never have met and allowed me to invite a friend to the newly offered Rooftop Yoga classes. My body is in better shape than ever before.

A friend who lives too far away for regular outings suggested a 5:01pm FaceTime Happy Hour on Wednesday. We’ve been meeting weekly for either Happy Hour or Coffee Hour since March. Our friendship has never been stronger.

During the height of the pandemic, my son turned 21. People took time to drive by, drop a six-pack of beer or adult beverage on the sidewalk, and wish him well. No bar night … no party … no matter. The kindness and thoughtfulness of their efforts spoke volumes. It created a connection that this time of separation cannot destroy.

That theatre I mentioned hosts an annual Gala. Since it couldn’t happen live, I had a chance to help create a “virtual” experience for the members. And — bonus — it included a creative challenge, a filming/acting project and wrapped up with a nice dinner for six. We found a way to socialize and celebrate anyway — a less extravagant, more genuine way.

I’m not saying that a global pandemic is a good thing. Many people have died — people I knew personally are in that “statistic.” People are suffering and struggling. Lost jobs and lost income — lost opportunities and an altered state — have resulted in depression and increased anxiety for many. These are difficult times. That’s our truth right now.

But if you look at your own life, perhaps you too can find some Light in the tunnel — some “Best of times” in the midst of all this “Worst.”

We’ve learned to better appreciate people we CAN finally see and spend time with them. We’ve learned to appreciate slower days with puzzles, Netflix and walks while the movie theatres and gyms are closed. We’ve found ways to be together, safely. We’ve made time for the people and the activities that matter most. And we’ve learned — well, I’ve learned — that losing a job has the potential to propel me to action I might not have taken, opening doors I might not have tried. Oh, those doors might be jammed right now, but I’ll find the key. I believe the next right thing IS out there.

If we truly view this as the Worst of Times, we cannot help but look deeper and recognize the Bests in it too. The Bests we might have missed had we been rushing along at our pre-March 12 pace. After all, if you read the WHOLE first paragraph of Mr. Dickens book, there is a perspective there that transcends the 18th Century … a perspective that we can bring into 2020 and our struggling world.

There’s never just the Worst. If we insist on living in absolutes, what goes down, must come up. It’s like we’re riding a teeter totter. We balance for a time and then — even if our side goes down — we come back up.

Check it out … A Tale of Two Cities. Oh, just remember to wear a mask and stay socially distant if you go to the bookstore to pick up a copy of this source material …

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way—in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.

A Tale of Two Cities – Charles Dickens

— Jenni