The quarantine has been lonely and long. I look forward to when we will get back to normal, especially at school. However, there have been multiple silver linings for me. I have several things I look forward to carrying with me into post-quarantine life.

Cooking and baking are on my list. I’ve always loved to bake, but now I have added a sourdough starter named Stanley, who is serving us well with weekly loaves of sourdough. Cooking, on the other hand, was always only functional for me, never fun or creative. I have turned around 180 degrees, and now I delight in making healthy and delicious meals. My genius hour during our at-home learning was about using the spices in my spice cabinet. I continue to do so with abandon and joy.

In addition to being in the kitchen more, I am also happy that there is less stress in my life, due to a lighter schedule. I’m getting better sleep and have more prayer and quiet meditation. I’m an introvert through and through, so I do better with more solitude. I know the quarantine has not been good for everyone’s mental health, and so I am humbly thankful that I feel as good as I do.

Though I’ve been disappointed in my lack of quarantine reading, I am pleased with all the writing I’m doing. I’ve always been a writer, but since the end of February, I have written more regularly than ever before — 50+ blog posts and 40+ poems, not to mention at least 8,458 emails for school.

Finally, what I am making a commitment to carrying after we go back to “normal” is the message of Black Lives Matter. The U.S. (and, indeed the world) should not go back to normal in the area of human rights. Too many of us, and that includes me, have stayed silent long enough. We must work to dismantle systemic injustice, inequality, and racism. I pray we all carry the story of George Floyd so this is a turning point in our civilization.

Those are a few things I will carry with me throughout the days I have left in this world (minus writing all those emails).

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Today is Wednesday, Day 106 in Bahrain, day 71 of The Isolation Journals with Suleika Jaouad. Today’s prompt was provided by Clifford Thompson. It is to write about what we hope to carry forward from the quarantine? Clifford’s latest book is What It Is: Race, Family, and One Thinking Black Man’s Blues.