From March Aria Project singer Cecilia Davis
My pandemic experience is not unique. Like scores of households everywhere, the March 2020 shut-down transformed our home into a shared working and learning space where my kids, husband and I fumbled through virtual school and remote work.
When it all began, I got right to work on Pinterest-worthy, daily household schedules that included such illusions as daily family walks, nutritious snacks, meditation time, educational movies, and perfectly balanced parental teamwork. But as stay-at-home life dragged on, my best-laid plans for household harmony and productivity quickly devolved into daily chaos, and general family discord. A typical weekday usually unraveled as early as my first cup of coffee, when a child refused to participate in his first virtual classroom meet of the day. Or when another child’s Chromebook wouldn’t power up. Or when brotherly conflict disrupted my meeting. Or one of a zillion other possible things that got in the way. It didn’t take long for me to go from “we can do this!” to “God help me if this lasts much longer” and “get me out of here” and so on and so forth. Plus, maneuvering it as a parent of spirited, neurodivergent boys that require extra academic, emotional and beahvioral interventions added to the overwhelm.
So to illustrate the sloppiness of it all, I chose to muddle through Cleopatra’s aria, “Piangero la sorte mia”, from Handel’s opera Giulio Cesare. In this aria, an imprisoned Cleopatra believes her beloved Caesar is dead, weeping hopelessly for her fate and imminent death. In the middle of the aria, she explodes in a rage, passionately describing how she vows to seek revenge. My family’s performance of this aria contextualizes it as one of my many zoom meetings gone awry.
Though my response to the pandemic wasn’t quite as melodramatic as Cleopatra’s scene, I could certainly identify with her hopelessness and desperation (oh - and her imprisonment, too) as shut-down dragged on and my best-laid plans for household harmony and productivity unraveled. Heck - like Cleopatra’s mid-aria explosion, I certainly had my fair share of pandemic temper tantrums (one even resulting in the denting of my husband’s car—but that’s an aria for another day.)
In the end, I learned that letting go of expectations, accepting the chaos, reveling in little victories, and granting myself and my family grace were much better survival tactics. It’s a lot easier said than done. I still fail miserably at it most of the time. But two years into this pandemic, I think I’m getting a little better at it now. 😉
Lots of love and thanks to my sons Owen and Milo, and my husband Jon for lending their talents to this project.
When it all began, I got right to work on Pinterest-worthy, daily household schedules that included such illusions as daily family walks, nutritious snacks, meditation time, educational movies, and perfectly balanced parental teamwork. But as stay-at-home life dragged on, my best-laid plans for household harmony and productivity quickly devolved into daily chaos, and general family discord. A typical weekday usually unraveled as early as my first cup of coffee, when a child refused to participate in his first virtual classroom meet of the day. Or when another child’s Chromebook wouldn’t power up. Or when brotherly conflict disrupted my meeting. Or one of a zillion other possible things that got in the way. It didn’t take long for me to go from “we can do this!” to “God help me if this lasts much longer” and “get me out of here” and so on and so forth. Plus, maneuvering it as a parent of spirited, neurodivergent boys that require extra academic, emotional and beahvioral interventions added to the overwhelm.
So to illustrate the sloppiness of it all, I chose to muddle through Cleopatra’s aria, “Piangero la sorte mia”, from Handel’s opera Giulio Cesare. In this aria, an imprisoned Cleopatra believes her beloved Caesar is dead, weeping hopelessly for her fate and imminent death. In the middle of the aria, she explodes in a rage, passionately describing how she vows to seek revenge. My family’s performance of this aria contextualizes it as one of my many zoom meetings gone awry.
Though my response to the pandemic wasn’t quite as melodramatic as Cleopatra’s scene, I could certainly identify with her hopelessness and desperation (oh - and her imprisonment, too) as shut-down dragged on and my best-laid plans for household harmony and productivity unraveled. Heck - like Cleopatra’s mid-aria explosion, I certainly had my fair share of pandemic temper tantrums (one even resulting in the denting of my husband’s car—but that’s an aria for another day.)
In the end, I learned that letting go of expectations, accepting the chaos, reveling in little victories, and granting myself and my family grace were much better survival tactics. It’s a lot easier said than done. I still fail miserably at it most of the time. But two years into this pandemic, I think I’m getting a little better at it now. 😉
Lots of love and thanks to my sons Owen and Milo, and my husband Jon for lending their talents to this project.
Check out Cecilia's rendition of "Piangerò la sorta mia" from Handel's Giulio Cesare!
And check out all the Aria Project installments here!
