Quarantine Chronicles Day 17 (QD17)

I’m much better today. For the past week or so, I’ve been seeing, hearing, and reading content that all somehow give the same recurring message: focus on what you can control; not on the things you cannot.

Focus on what you can control; not on the things you cannot.

What I Can’t Control

• How long I am in quarantine
• Where I quarantine
• The policies and regulations set in place by the government
• The test results

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What I Can Control

• My attitude ?
• How I spend my time
• The thoughts I think
• The words I speak
• What I listen to
• What I eat/don’t eat
• My countenance
• My overall perspective
• How I respond and respect the staff attending to my needs

If I can’t control anything in the former list, I might as well focus on controlling what is in the latter. ??

Yesterday was a Moment

Once again, many of you reading this have reached out to me today to see how I’m doing and what my state of mind is like. I’m grateful for that.

Yesterday, I had a moment.

Thank you for allowing me to express my frustration without judgement. It was just one of those scenarios where you go off on a much-needed tangent and then return feeling a bit better.

And I am better today.

I started feeling better yesterday when I plugged in my hard drive to see if I had any movies on it. I knew I didn’t but for some reason, I thought one would miraculously appear. It didn’t. ? Instead, I checked to make sure that the footage from last year’s trip to Africa was still intact and it was!

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Footage from Africa 2020

For the first time yesterday, I watched every single video file from Ghana, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, and a few from Kenya since loading all the files on the hard drive almost a year ago. I haven’t finished the ones from Kenya, nor have I started on South Africa or Egypt yet but I plan to do that this week.

Friend, I have some great footage on this hard drive!

I started thinking of ways that I could piece the footage together for the cinematic vlogs I’m creating. ❤️ #GoodStuff

The very first one I’m going to do is for America’s black history month (next month - February). On my first day in Ghana, my friends took me to the coast where the slave trade first began.

I forgot that I captured footage of the tour guide giving me the whole story! ?

And this was before I had all the fancy equipment I have now but it still looks good!

As I watched the videos, all of the emotions that I felt on that day came rushing back - almost as if I was there again, walking around the dungeons where slaves were held.

That, my friend, is a powerful story to tell and I look forward to sharing it with you.

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The Moment “It” Changed

As I continued watching the footage, I noticed that my entire attitude had changed.

I went from being angry, sad, and frustrated about not yet being able to leave this hospital, to celebrating the fact that I’ve done a good job of being positive so far. I still have a lot to be grateful for and that, hopefully soon, I’ll be back on track to Dalian.

Who cares if there’s an extra two weeks that I’ll be delayed from getting there? (??‍♀️ Actually, me...I care ?) It’s really cold in Dalian right now anyways, so by the time I get there, it may be a few degrees warmer. ??‍♀️ (See? I’m trying to look on the bright side ?)

Simply put: IT IS WHAT IT IS.

I can continue making the best out of this situation by focusing on what I can control and leaving the rest to God.

He’s much better at handling these kinds of ordeals than I am. ♥️

Until tomorrow, friend...