We recently marked one year of living with the COVID-19 pandemic.  Millions have lost their lives worldwide and everyone around the globe has had to deal with significant changes in their work, home and social lives. We checked in with our Northwest Nature Shop community – customers, employees, vendors and fellow Ashland business owners to see how people are managing and hopefully provide some inspiration on ways to cope with stress and worry as the pandemic drags on.  We asked these two questions: 1.)  What have you found to be your best coping mechanisms during the COVID-19 pandemic? 2.) What was an unexpected personal outcome of a year living with the COVID-19 pandemic?

What have you found to be your best coping mechanisms during the COVID-19 pandemic?

Katrina Meister, artist and creator Katrina’s Cards and Gifts (sold at Northwest Nature Shop): What has helped me most work through the Pandemic is two things:  The first is spending time outside, mostly walks and gardening.  The second has been more art and business related.  Much of my focus on new art and new card designs has been on messages of hope, encouragement and friendship: finding the positive and finding ways for people to share that with others.  I also started creating watercolor e-workshops so my customers and students could continue to take my classes from home, creating art can be good therapy for anyone.

Jenny Johnson, Ashland educator, owner and teacher Birdsong Nursery, mother of six children ages 6-21 years old:  Books!  Historical fiction mostly, getting lost in other times and gaining perspective.  One of my favorites was actually “Year of Wonders,” about the plague in a small town in England.  I’ve been swept away by the Jacobites in Scotland and the occupation of France during WWII.  Studying French and planning for a trip to France has also been a coping strategy, new skills and something big to look forward to.

Kathy Uhtoff, founder of Northwest Nature Shop:  Getting outside has definitely been the best therapy.  I’m not sure if I would have stayed mentally intact if I couldn’t have gotten out in the woods.

Jeanine Moy, Program director of Vesper Meadow: My best coping mechanisms have been maintaining the core of my work, which is my stronghold only because I whole-heartedly believe in the mission and purpose. Also, having a core couple of friends to be close and share meals with. And definitely the privilege to live amongst nature and observe wildlife, and the ability to venture in to the backcountry for backpacking and skiing.

Nolan Richard, SOU Grad Student AND works at Northwest Nature Shop: Birdwatching, cocktails, and tennis. Going outside during the pandemic was grounding because the natural world is going about its business as it always has, and I felt lucky to live in a place with so much nearby public land! Once bars closed, I decided to try making my own mixed drinks, and I found it to be exhilarating – making classic recipes and coming up with some of my own. Lastly, I’ve rediscovered the big sport from my childhood: tennis.

Bjorn Johnson, AMS student, age 13:  Sports and music

Anne Robinson, co-owner of The Crown Jewel in Ashland and Jacksonville: Best coping mechanism for our business has been investing lots of time and work on our website and other online presences.

Marie Caballero Uhtoff of Northwest Nature Shop: Gardening. With three kids at home doing remote school and my husband and I working from home, there are definitely some overwhelming moments.  Gardening gives me the opportunity to go outside, kneel amongst the plants, get my hands dirty and my blood pressure immediately lowers. A good friend of mine is a Waldorf teacher and she once told me one of her tactics for when she has a kids in her second grade class feeling anxious or overwhelmed she makes up a story that she needs a hole dug outside and sends them outside to dig that hole and nine times out of ten the activity of being outside, doing physical work and being focused on a task helps the child be centered and able to rejoin the class. I often feel as if I am that 8 year old child needing a quick reset button – gardening gives me that.

What was an unexpected personal outcome of a year living with the COVID-19 pandemic?

Katrina: An unexpected but positive result is a home repair that turned into a major home improvement and remodel, we have done all the work ourselves so it has taken 4x longer than expected, but it is getting closer to being finished and has been worth it!

Jenny: I dove into therapy and am tackling some habits I wanted to change.  It’s been wonderful actually to take the time and use some of my energy for my own wellbeing.  The ripple effects have been positive.  I felt I had time to do that because the outside demands on me are less during the pandemic (I’m not driving kids places all the time!)

Kathy: Time to Garden.  I had quite a productive (for my standards) vegetable garden.  It was so gratifying to run out to the garden before dinner, pick some salad greens and pull some carrots!

Jeanine:  My personal outcome that comes to mind is a bit too personnel for the newsletter! But I’ll at least say that it has definitely given me second thoughts about some of my goals and directions for my personal life. It definitely highlights the importance of being close and supporting the ones you love.  Further, when thinking generally about the state of the world, including the ecological degradation that set the stage for the pandemic – I feel even more resolute to continue my work in community building around land stewardship.

Nolan: I’ve gotten to spend more time with my parents. My work was remote for the first part of the pandemic so I lived with my parents for a couple months.

Bjorn: I am a lot more appreciative for the things we have. I am also a lot stronger mentally and physically.

Anne: Unexpected personal outcome has been lots of extra family time and exploring local hikes and wilderness.

Marie:  I have gained extra time with my teenage children. Under normal circumstances we’d all be running in different directions, rarely spending time all together. The pandemic has slowed us all down.  We’ve taken long hikes together on the weekends when normally we’d be split up driving to three different soccer games.