I have a friend who sometimes puts herself in time-out. I love that picture–the huffy little kid version of her sitting on her bed with crossed legs, crossed arms, and a mad face. Ha! But she’s smart. Her purpose is to cool down and re-set. To slow down long enough to figure out what she wants. Her time-outs aren’t punishments, they’re blessings.

This quarantine business sort of seems like that kind of time-out—an opportunity.

(To my friends who have kiddos at home, I’m guessing you WISH someone would put you in time-out for those few minutes of peace. Hang in there.)

But are you starting to think about life after this time-out is over? Will we be so cautious we’ll never hug again? Or will we rush to the hugging? Will we be more attached to our devices than ever? Or will we want to flush ‘em down the toilet? Will we double down on what we want…or pick up where we left off with those self-defeating attitudes or toxic relationships?

We can take advantage of this big ‘ol time-out.

In some parts of life, we have no choice. We need to keep enduring something difficult and keep on praying. (“Lord, please change my circumstances or change me.”)

But in some cases, we DO have choice. We can decide what to resume and what to leave behind. To some extent we can be Marie Kondo-ish. Does so-and-so situation bring me joy? We can define our post-virus selves. We can come out of time-out better than we went into it.

At least that’s what I’ve been thinking. You have a lot of time to think when you’re in time-out.