The best part about the return of spring, usually, is the chance to wake up from the cold days of January and February and embrace the world again.

It’s usually a time when the black-and-white days of winter fade away, replaced by the brilliant colors of blooming flowers and the greenest green grass. Days spent hunkered down in semi-hibernation give way to reconnecting with neighbors and the community – with backyard cookouts, playdates at the park, Easter egg hunts and annual gatherings of all sorts.

Not this year.

I don’t know about you, but I’ll be honest: My mood has changed with the day, lately.

Some mornings I wake up with an overwhelming positivity, joining the chorus of “We’ll get through this” and “We’re all in this together.” Can’t you just feel the support, the good vibes being shared back and forth from person to person?

Some days, on the other hand, I sink into a funk. Everything is different, and it feels like we’re only at the beginning of a long journey through social distancing, quarantine and dire predictions about the “new normal” we will never escape.

Winter is always a little blue, but spring usually washes that away.

Not this year.

Like everyone, I’m trying to look on the bright side, to see the silver linings, and I hope you are too. Within our households, there’s more time for family togetherness, a chance to slow down and be together. There’s an opportunity to remember the importance of human connection, to value it as we should have all along. There’s a unique chance for acts of kindness, from buying a meal for a healthcare worker to sharing the last pack of toilet paper with someone in need. And despite the growing number of coronavirus cases, most of us do still have our health to be thankful for.

We have to all focus on these “upsides” to keep our chin up during this uniquely challenging season.

Just in case you need it, as I sometimes do, I wanted to encourage you not to let the coronavirus get you down.

Even if it’s becoming a little cliche, it’s true: We are in this together, and we will get through this.