This series evolved out of conversations about looking for meaning while working remotely, juggling work and home life, and staying in touch with ourselves and others during the COVID-19 pandemic. We hope these profiles remind us all of how we are staying human.
Bevin Luna is an industrial hygienist with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration Consultation Program in the Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences department at CSU. She is a bird-watcher and a musician who describes her style as “rock and roots.” Her band performed recently in a livestream from Washington’s in Fort Collins. (Video above by Chase Baker)
Here’s how she stays human.
Q: What types of feelings has this pandemic brought out in you?
Luna: I felt a lot of anxiety in the beginning not knowing what expectations were going to be with work and personal life and family. And is everyone going to stay healthy? I also realized how stressed out I was and how busy I kept myself before the pandemic, and it actually has surprisingly made me feel more grounded than I’ve ever felt by staying close to home — just connecting with people that I love, having more time for creativity, and getting out and taking care of myself through music or being in nature.
Q: What role does music play in helping you stay human during this time?
Luna: Music makes me feel grounded — and keeps me grounded — because it’s just a necessity for me. Everyone in my family plays music, a majority of my friends play music, and it’s just a way to connect with community. To have that be more amplified now, when you really have to be distanced from people that you love and having music be able to bring everyone together — even if it’s in a socially distanced way — it really provides that family and community unit that I crave and need every day of my life. The creativity and being able to feel productive by contributing to something that brings joy to people’s lives, and definitely my life, is just pretty special for me.
Q: What else have you been doing beyond playing music?
Luna: Lots of bird watching. I love to get outside and watch the birds and go to their different neighborhoods. I take my binoculars and really clear my mind and appreciate the beauty in nature. Bird watching is a great way to get outside and appreciate what you have in your surrounding environment, plus they’re great indicators for how your environment is doing. And they’re very musical just like I am! They build beautiful families and beautiful nests and you can always see them traveling through. Wherever you might be you’re definitely going to find a different set of birds that welcome you in with their beautiful songs.
Q: What do you do at Colorado State University?
Luna: I’m an industrial hygienist with the OSHA Consultation Program in the Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences department at CSU. We we don’t provide services for CSU specifically. We are funded through a grant with the Department of Labor, and we travel to all small businesses in the state of Colorado that have requested compliance assistance for OSHA health and safety regulations. Post pandemic, it’s been a whole different world because we are restricted from traveling and we’ve been working remotely by providing virtual assistance to all of our clients.
Q: What’s your advice to anyone looking for a new way to stay human during this pandemic?
Luna: Take every day very slowly and take time to yourself to do the things that make your heart happy. Don’t get overwhelmed by the weight of what’s going on on the world in the world on a global scale. Take a step away from that and just really find what makes you happy truly in your core.
