Resting together, here, are my son and his wife at a summer cottage on Cape Cod.  This was before children.  Babies and young children change the look of rest.  For me resting near someone is challenging, because tuning out noises and movement is difficult.  I am slow to fall asleep.  My husband falls asleep quickly and then makes noises.  Napping together can be challenging.  We can, however, support each other to get rest.  While many people have been staying-at-home to slow the spread of Covid-19, we may have needed extra understanding, humor, and support to be able rest (and live) in unity.

     This painting was done from a photograph my sister took of her left-handed-carpenter son's injured thumb during the rennovation of her kitchen.  Although delay of work was necessary, the desired outcome included his complete recovery, ability to function fully in his future carpentry work, and a completed kitchen.  The kitchen got done, and it looks great.  His thumb healed, and his work is still exceptional.  If he had ignored the necessity to rest it, the outcomes may not have been so good.
     I think we can learn some things here.  Health professionals say we need to practice social distancing to stop the spread of Covid-19.   The desired outcome includes health for all residents of our communities, businesses that can function well while keeping clients, staff, and customers safe, and a better functioning society for the future.  We can choose to ignore it, or we can accept the delay of plans and inconvenience to wait for the best outcome.  

Looking through my photos, I found several that show rest.  I painted this picture of my sister resting on my other sister's couch at a lake in New Hampshire.  We had gathered there for a couple of days of retreat, which we do from time to time.  The change of pace was welcome.  The cat and my sister found an ideal spot to rest.  Yes, that is a fluffy white cat on the couch with my sister.  Our pace is changed now because of Covid-19, yet I still hope to learn about rest.  Rest cannot be mandated.  But I can choose to rest--physically or mentally--- even for a few moments in a day.