It’s interesting that despite the fact that most of us have never experienced a pandemic of this nature before, it seems as though many of us expect each other to have it all together. We expect each other to know what to wear to protect ourselves, where to go and where to avoid, which exercises to do to keep ourselves physically healthy and mentally sharp, and so on and so on, the list easily continues.
We expect others to be considerate of us as they walk around with their masks on while maintaining at least a six-foot distance from us in an effort to comply with social-distancing requirements, and sometimes our expectations are actually met. We instinctively continue to do whatever it takes to keep ourselves safe, all the while reminiscing about the days when the touch of humanity was prevalent, taken for granted even, and a simple trip to the grocery store required little forethought beyond the compilation of a simple grocery list.
This world that we now live in is very different, but that really is not news to you. The difference, though, might not be really the one that you imagined. You see, this new world of ours, the one full of social-distancing practices and heightened precautions, is really the same world that we were living in pre-pandemic, but instead of the heightened level of caution and the leeriness about our neighbors and beyond remaining nestled deep inside of our covert selves, they have jumped to the surface, alerting us to their existence loudly via the most potent and disruptive megaphone they could find.
This world, this new existence, is merely an extension of the lives we were living, just at an alternate angle. This virus, COVID-19, through the severe havoc that it has been wreaking, has provided a tangible display of the seemingly tamed chaos that has been lurking just beneath the surface of our busy and ever-reaching lives.
And if there is one thing, among many, that is true it’s that this pandemic era is filled with unknowns, many of which we many never come to fully grasp. Let’s face it, much of this experience is out of our hands. We each have just about as much control over the outcome as our neighbors do. Let that sink in and allow it to grow in depth and width in your mind. We are wondering, needing, and seeking.
Quite possibly, the sheer fact that we are all in some way very vulnerable, during this time especially, has the potential to soften our hearts and broaden the bandwidth of our minds, encouraging us to extend to each other the very grace and understanding that each one of us needs. It’s just a thought. A hopeful thought, which very well just might help us to get it together, together. Be blessed. #sanguinemango
Sanguine Mango 