Pandemic Ponderings: I

Hey, greetings and salutations! 2020 is starting off with an incredible bang…and not in a good way.

First things first. It seems like many governments across the world are coming up with plans to help the citizenry cope with loss of income, and the inability for people to pay their rent, as well business losses. If you find yourself in those situations, please check with the authorities to see what kind of help you might be able to receive.

I don’t think anyone thought that we’d end up here at the beginning of the year, or even 3 weeks ago. Flattening the curve, social distancing, CORVID-19 are all terms that have entered our lexicon and have been the harbinger of the most fundamental change in society a lot of us have ever experienced.

Change can be good. It can be bad. I guess what I’m saying is that we have to take this time to contemplate change, and what needs to change, and what has to stay the same.

And if I may insert a sense of optimism…this WILL pass. Eventually some parts of our lives will return to normal. And others will have the stamp of change indelibly etched on it.

So, what do we do? What do we do with the time we have? How do we live and adapt to this “Brave New World”?

I think the first thing to do is to check to see if our privilege is making things seem worse than they are. I have a decent job, I get paid well, I have sick time. I will most likely not be furloughed. Am I inconvenienced? YES. A thousand times YES. At the end of the day, people will kill to have the life that I consider inconvenient.

I think another thing to do is to STOP following the news and social media. Just for a little bit out of the day. The overload of information, rumours, fake facts, etc., can do a number on one’s soul. Am I saying ignore everything like a proverbial ostrich with his head in the sand? No. What I AM saying is that overloads aren’t good–and that many people will be better served by having a break where they can experience just a bit of normalcy. Read a book. Create a blog. Write a musical. Listen or stream some music. ANYTHING.

Remember–this WILL all be over. What will you do then? What parts of your life will you keep? Which friends will still be there? How will your world view change? What stuff on your bucket list will you try to accomplish? What things can you do now to accomplish those goals when all is said and done? Something to think about.

Stay tuned for Part II.