I immediately think it’s one of those major, unexpected obstacles that has organically presented itself on the path- like a big, bursting river that just wiped out the high traffic bridge I was about to cross. So, instead of rhythmically moving along with my same thought patterns, I’ve been forced to take a pause and really examine (once again- sheesh!) who I know myself to be.First, take a second, and look at the headshot I provided for this little writing exercise. Do you see me? Blond. And not just blond, expensive blond. Like every 5 weeks expensive blond. Enter COVID-19 and the truth is revealed. Not blond, very brunette. And in the interest of full disclosure (because I like to think of myself as devoted to truth), I also have a few gray bits in the mix.In the past (like three months ago) I would panic at the brown roots growing in, exposing my lie and not looking the part of a polished professional. “What would my clients think of me?!” “They won’t hear what I have to say if my hair looks unkept!” (I thought this for real). I would text my guy and move my already booked appointment up, keeping the 20ish year illusion going strong and guaranteeing people would take me seriously (really??).Fast forward to the present moment, and truth has literally, as it always does, risen to the surface.This shared chapter of “shelter in place” has not only resulted in a mandate of self and collective reflection, it has exposed multiple threads of inadequacies and corruption in our social, economic, and geopolitical fabric. Okay, that being said, before I can change the world, make my mark, and serve the light, I have to take a hard look at my own little life and examine my role in our collective human experience.I am a mother of four teenagers and have long subscribed to the principle of modeling expected behavior. My greatest desire has been to infuse my offspring with a sense of joy for life, sovereign independence, and a recognition that they are a part of something much bigger and wondrous than themselves. I want for them what I want for me- a balanced, knock it out of the park human experience, coupled with an intimate relationship with the eternal divine. This sounds good in theory, but in practice it’s intense. I have to walk the talk and practice the preach, which means I have to embody a sense of self-government. Every day. With radical consistency. And in order to self-govern, I need to abide by some laws. As the oldest child of three and in my longing to be obedient (eye roll) and g-o-o-d I began my search for “The Laws” at a very early age. Of course, I slipped down dozens of rabbit holes, losing myself to man made laws. (And when I say “man” made, I mean MAN made! Sorry guys). Now, at 43, I have a solid sense of the laws to which I subscribe- Bringing me back to the original question- “how has COVID-19 effected my spiritual journey”. Stick with me and I will try to bring this full circle.The first law I know to be true is that we are all connected- that what we do to one of us, we do to the whole of us.  And if COVID-19 has taught us anything, it is this. We are all in this together (not to sound cliche) whether this is a pandemic or a plandemic, no one is excused from this experience. I heard Governor Cuomo on CNN say something like “anywhere there is an outbreak, everywhere there is an outbreak.” Okay Cuomo, I hear you, but remember, in principle, the same thing applies to love, healing, kindness, generosity- so let’s get going folks! Anywhere there is love, everywhere there is love- let’s turn up the volume of THAT.Abiding by this first mentioned law brings us to the next- honoring your neighbor, treating the other as you would want to be treated. Listen, I don’t want to wear a mask…but my neighbor may be afraid, and I certainly don’t want to contribute to the spread of anxiety or disease, so I mask up. That being said, this law of treating others how you want to be treated can be a tricky one, because many of us don’t treat ourselves very well. We don’t follow the law of honoring oneself. Oftentimes, we put our neighbor’s need, or our child’s, or our friend’s…, before our own, in a misguided attempt to feel ___ (you fill in the blank). Reverence for the life we have been given is crucial for survival, and even more so during a time of dis-ease. So ya, try to get some more rest and exercise, eat the spinach and most importantly, laugh at something.And, since we have this unexpected thinking time, what is our “life” that we have been given all about anyway, I mean, why bother? Welllll, think of one person that you love and one person that loves you. For bonus points, think of one thing you love to do. BOOM. That’s what this life thing is about. LOVE, the most important law (in my opinion). If it weren’t for the soul housed in human packaging set up, we wouldn’t get to tangibly experience all that we love.My kids will tell you that I love love. I love love so much that in my past, I sacrificed my voice in an effort to preserve what I thought was love. I regularly choked on my truth to lovingly spare the feelings of others (and keep myself safe- but that’s another article). Eventually, and painfully, I learned the law of cause and effect- that what we say and do matters, and what we don’t say and don’t do matters. I know, duh…but…hey, those damn rabbit holes. Our choices reach out into the quantum cosmos of the ALL. Therefore, TRUTH matters. Love doesn’t conquer all (sorry Lionel Ritchie) unless truth is in the mix. I won’t pretend that any of us has access to absolute Truth, but I do know that a lot of us are committed to learning and living as closely to it as we can. I also know that as a law, truth, coupled with love, is the great healer.Lastly, I am a firm believer in the law of humility. If we are lucky, sometimes we know what we don’t know. But most times, we don’t know what we don’t know. (How annoying was that to read?) Humility keeps our checks and balance system in operating order. It holds the space for us to grow and evolve as souls having this human experience. It allows us to find peace in the not knowing and gives us grace for others that we don’t understand (like, seriously don’t understand).These laws and all of their unmentioned cousins, have served to keep my system in balance during this unprecedented time. The laws don’t change. Even when everything else does. All of our personal choices ripple out into eternity (forwards, backward, up, down), and as a natural brunette human player during this wild chapter of our existence, I want to know that my time, in this space, is contributing the frequency of what I can best describe as rainbow glitter good. Picture that in your free time.So, how has COVID-19 effected my spiritual journey? It has locked me into my devotion to the laws. And by the way, I don’t look so bad with four inch brown roots. I even think my clients are still listening to what I have to say. But hey, I don’t know what I don’t know :)