By Carrie Gress

We are faced with an international crisis but it doesn’t mean we have to live in fear and anxiety. It is easy to get sucked into the news cycle or binge watching series after series, leaving us feeling dissipated and uninspired.

The key, no matter what you do, is to make sure your spiritual life is alive. Certainly, we should be praying for an end to this plague and those suffering from it, but tapping into our relationship with God can animate all that we do in new and fresh ways.

This unprecedented time is an opportunity to do creative and life-giving things that can bring order, calm, and peace to our lives now and after the pandemic ends. Think spiritual staycation not imprisonment. Here’s a list to spark your creative juices:

1. Catch up on sleep

2. Write a letter (with pen and paper)

3. Read one book of the Bible slowly and carefully

4. Pray the daily rosary

5. Start a garden

6. Mani/pedi

7. Tell, retell, or record family stories

8. Organize closets or cabinets

9. Take a masterclass

10. Shop online sales

11. Do a craft project, sew, or knit

12. Tend to your yard or indoor plants

13. Make preserves

14. Cook new recipes

15. Read a novel

16. Do a puzzle

17. Exercise

18. Tackle your DIY list

19. Discover new cocktails

20. Shop online at local stores (or purchase gift cards)

21. Rediscover your dreams

22. Follow up on unanswered emails

23. Watch daily Mass online

24. Go for a walk or bike ride (where legal)

25. Polish silver

26. Play cards or board games

27. Reach out to an old friend

28. Get digital photos organized and printed

29. Work on family genealogy

30. Send thank you notes to essential service providers

31. Be merciful to those around you

32. Sit in silence for mental prayer

33. Organize your books

34. Take a long bath

35. Clean out your car

36. Read aloud books as a family (or with grandparents on Zoom)

37. Go through old photo albums

38. Look for things for which you are grateful

39. Sort through your wardrobe

40. Send a letter or small gift to someone who is alone

41. Try new wine

42. Read poetry

43. Make croissants

44. Take pictures

45. Make a retreat

46. Cut and arrange spring flowers

47. Paint

48. Clean your freezer and/or oven

49. Listen to classical music

50. Find things that make you laugh