By Francesca Edralin, Student Assistant for the Undergraduate Minor in Sustainability
On Thursday, April 16 Sustainable GW hosted a webinar titled “The Big Reframe: Shifting Your Focus to the Better Things”, led by Ayana Moore of GW Facilities Planning, Construction, and Management. While I was not sure what to expect when I signed up for the session, I was so glad that I ended up tuning in. The session was interactive, engaging, eye-opening, and taught me some valuable lessons on the importance of reframing your perspective during an unprecedented time like this.
No GW student or faculty could have anticipated a pandemic as severe as this. With a student body that is constantly “doing things” in the hustle and bustle of Foggy Bottom, many of us are used to an extremely fast-paced way of life. Walk around campus, and you’ll always find students on their way to their next class, their next club meeting, or their next interview. In such a lively and active environment, the thought of having to lose it all and go home likely never crossed anyone’s mind.
And then of course, the unimaginable happened. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, GW students have been kicked off of their bustling campus, and have been sent home to an environment likely far less exciting. This scenario is unprecedented, unimaginable, and undesired for many. But could there be a silver lining to all of this?
As the stereotypical GW student who thrives off of packing her schedule with e-board meetings, a work study job, five intensive classes, and an internship, “free time” was a foreign concept to me before the pandemic. It certainly took me some time to transition to this stationary way of life, but I’ve been able to make the most of it. I’ve been able to find meaning during these slower and more isolating times.
Honestly, a lot of it required me to shift my way of thinking. As Ayana Moore emphasized in her webinar, the key is always to reframe how you see your current situation. For me, this meant no longer blaming coronavirus for cutting my sophomore year short and canceling all my April and May plans. Instead, I’ve reframed the situation, accepting that this pandemic is an issue far bigger than myself, and that everyone is pausing their lives for the greater good.
Instead of hustling from one meeting to another, I can take this time to just “be”. No outside pressures, no time crunches - instead I am learning how to enjoy the simpler things in life and emerging as a more grateful and self-aware person. Now that I have much more free time on my hands, I’ve gotten back into old hobbies, like singing and songwriting, as well as taken on new hobbies, like baking and meditating. I’ve also been able to reconnect with my family members, who I felt so distant from when I was back in DC.
In life, things will sometimes be out of your control. This pandemic happens to be one of those things. Yet, reframing is a powerful tool to make the most of this situation - and see light when everyone else sees the darkness. During the webinar, one of the students reframed the situation so beautifully: “We will emerge out of this different and more united.”
I couldn’t agree more. This is a difficult time for sure, but it is also a shared moment worldwide for learning, reflecting, and reframing. I am confident that once we overcome this chaos, humanity will emerge stronger, more grateful, and more unified than ever before.
