During this time of continued social distancing, our interactions with those outside of our households are limited. How can we stay connected with friends and family members that we no longer see on a daily basis? There are lots of ways to stay connected – especially with technology. Here are a few suggestions:
Gratitude Letters
Let your loved ones know what they mean to you through a letter.
Movies
There are various apps to stream movies with friends. (I personally use Netflix Party and Kast).
Video Chat Exercises
There are lots of ways to connect and have fun with friends and family via video chats. As a general practice, it is a good idea to set some ground rules beforehand. For example, are there any words and/or themes you want to avoid? Or, what do you do if one participant isn’t comfortable sharing their response?
Try one of these exercises during your next chat session:
- Word Association: Choose a word and have your friend/family member respond with another word that comes to mind based on the word you picked. For example: Skates → Skinned Knee
- Storytelling Night: Have a night where you invite friends and family members to do a storytelling session and all share a story. To help spark story ideas you can even create a theme such as self-awareness, resilience, hope, or even food!
- Creative Collaborations: Whether it is a musical composition, short story (switching turns after every sentence), a collaborative online collage, or a film revolving around online interactions, everyone gets a chance to tap their creative side.
Other virtual engagement options include hosting a group study, co-working, and/or workout session with friends and family via Google Hangouts, Skype, Zoom, or Facetime.
We’d also like to know, what are you doing? We want to hear from our readers and have this question for you: What are some ways you are staying connected with loved ones? Let us know your answer on Facebook!
To stay engaged, follow #ywimn on all social media platforms.
Post Author: María Arreola, Young Women’s Cabinet member