I don't think that any of us has any great destiny that we have to obsess over. I think it's the daily task, the daily grind, the daily joy and enjoyment that really matters. The daily faithfulness to what is already at our fingertips, of what is already in our hands. But I also think that we all have something to offer. That something is ourselves. Our lives.
There are small things we can all do in order to make life more tolerable, perhaps even enjoyable for others. And if others are happy, then that ups the joy ante. It is infectious. A positive contagion. Just as fear and anxiety are also contagious. I was talking to someone yesterday who told me that he is not afraid of getting sick, but he does feel impacted by the anxiety that is in the air about this pandemic.
This is why I chose at the very onset to face this crisis with joy and hope. And compassion. I already knew that emotionally I would be okay, as I was on my way home from Costa Rica in March. But I did feel wary about being affected by the strong atmosphere of fear and anxiety that I knew would be awaiting me. As well as not being inoculated against the virus, most people aren't really inoculated against fear and anxiety In many cases they have not had much previous life experience of adversity, so they haven't really been strengthened. There also is a huge lack of faith in the world these days, and without faith, without a sense of God being there for us and with us, I don't think that a lot of people are going to be able to cope well. They have no real infrastructure of hope in their lives. As soon as things are no longer going their way, they collapse for lack of inner strength.
But I am not here to judge others. I am here to offer my love and support. So, when I see people everywhere wearing face masks because they erroneously think that is going to protect them from getting sick, I take care to appreciate that they are afraid, and this helps me feel compassion. I myself will not wear a mask under almost any circumstances, unless I would be visiting someone in hospital perhaps, and then it would be for their protection. There is also the possibility that once travel bans are lifted that airlines will still require that passengers wear masks, and with that inevitability, of course I would clench my teeth and bear it.
This isn't because I want to be ornery, but rather, I simply am not going to buy into the fear. I am also aware of the negative psychological impact on people of not being able to see other people's faces, and for this reason, I would prefer that others see my face when I am out in public. Not because I think I have a particularly attractive face, but so they can see at least one person smile their way with kindness.
Someone has been leaving small painted rocks with uplifting messages all over the place. They are quite wonderful to see. Yesterday, on one of my walks, I came across the mother lode of these stones, so I picked one up and put it in my pocket.. It is a long oval shape, about three inches long and an inch and a half wide, more or less, is on the flat side.. The bottom is painted forest green. The top has a purplish-grey background with the white letters of "believe there is good in the world", and a little red heart painted next to it.
When I told my friend in Colombia, Juan, about my little find on video chat last night, he did warn me to sanitize the rock just in case, and so I promptly anointed it with hand sanitizer. I am thinking of passing the rock on soon to someone else. Freshly sanitized, of course!
No comments:
Post a Comment