Message to HS Students During COVID-19
- Apr 2, 2020
- 2 min read
This was a VLOG I sent to my own PE Students (119 of them), but then I got to thinking that maybe more young adults could benefit from this message.
The two main points in this VLOG:
1. It's okay to "not be okay!" All I've been seeing in my social media feeds are messages about productivity, growth, efficiency. I've see tweets like:
"If you don't grow during all this downtime, shame on you!"
"This is a time for separation!"
And... I'm all for MOTIVATION, PRODUCTIVITY, IMPROVING. But - I think we are missing the point. This is a GLOBAL PANDEMIC. We are in uncharted waters... no one has experienced something like this before.
So, can we just take a moment to BREATH, BE STILL, and accept that IT'S OKAY TO NOT BE OKAY? As a teenager - allow yourself to feel angry, sad, frustrated, restless. This effects you - prom has been cancelled, sports have been cancelled, and so many are scared to ask: "Is graduation going to be cancelled too?"
It's okay to let that PAIN in. Let it sit, sink, process. Talk it out with a parent or friend. Pray about it, reflect on it... don't avoid it, don't think you're being selfish for feeling it, don't compare your pain to others! Just let it sink in so that you can process it, LET IT GO, and ultimately grow from it. I was listening to Abby Wambach's (USNT Soccer LEGEND) commencement speech to an all-girls university on YouTube. She said, "Pain is a catalyst for growth!"
Pain avoided = Pain wasted = Zero Growth
2. CRISIS = "to sift"
I've been reading Glennon Doyle's NY Times Best Seller, "UNTAMED." In it she explains the origin of the word, CRISIS. It means to sift. She paints the picture of miners looking for gold. They sift through all the sand, dirt and cling to what's left over... looking for something of value.
It's so indicative to what we are experiencing now. This is a time where we need to throw this crisis in front of our face and watch all those things we cherished so much (Sports, Beach, Restaurants, Social Outings) crumble. They are literally all cancelled ! Let them go and cling to what's left over, which are things like: FAMILY, RELATIONSHIPS, CALLING GRANDMA, SITTING ON YOUR PORCH, BEING STILL.
For some high schoolers, there is so much uncertainty. Yes, it's tragic... your sports season was cancelled, no prom, you miss your friends. It flat out stinks. But - what's left? Cling to it. Cherish it. Grow from it in your own time.
I can't promise you things will get better soon. I can promise that you are going to get through this.
Keep showing up.
(skip first 2 minutes of video / it's specifically for my students) :)
Coach
Comments