The coronavirus “lock in” has given many people a real chance be creative or at least busy. They had some extra time on their hands and decided to use it.
I read about a lady who liked draw and had the idea of using original drawings to create jig saw puzzles. This happened just when the stay-home edict came down. As result, the puzzles sold like the proverbial hot cakes, creating a new company and a nice income for the woman.
Here in Neosho, I have a friend who is a great seamstress and loves to sew. When the cry went out for masks, she made some for her friends. When other people saw them, they asked her to make some for them and offered to pay. The project just took off, thanks in part to her innovation of making them from material that showcased the Kansas City Chiefs or the St. Louis Cardinals. These and other logos created a good market.
Before she started making masks, she already made aprons and other kitchen items. People noticed this when they ordered masks, so sales of her entire line of sewing items picked up. Maybe too much. She became so busy she had to stop making items until she caught up. But, she has a lot of business which will keep her busy and with a lot of pocket change for a long time.
I have heard of people who used the down time to write a book which they had been wanting to do. They also learned to cook, started gardening and, of course, many became teachers
since their kids where forced out of school.
Many families started a band when several could play instruments. I saw several family bands on You Tube, and they produced every kind of music, some good and some not so good. And like at our house, we took a lot of time to do some deep cleaning and to rid ourselves of things too long stored in the basement or attic.
All these activities required time and those stay-at-home orders finally gave us time on our hands.
Everyone has the same number of minutes in their day. How we use that time is mostly our choice. We can sleep more, waste it away somehow, entertain ourselves more, create something, work with our children, do volunteer work, clean our house or do a million other things.
But as Dickens said, “time and tide wait for no man.” It tends to slip away and time is one thing we cannot get back.
Using time wisely is up to each of us, and we learn that just a little effort pays off, either financially or emotionally.
Just between you and me, I suspect some people did a lot of good while staying home during this awful time and are proud of what they got done.
(Kay Hively is a historian, author and former editor, reporter and columnist for the Neosho Daily News and Neosho Post.)
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