I recently read a quote that said, “the world is slowing down so we have time to rediscover ourselves”. Let’s be clear: I’m certain that no one would have wished this upon anyone. No one would have wished that our world would be wholly unprepared for a global pandemic. Or that our country would be quarantined for what might be months on end when this all seemed like it could “never happen to us” only four months ago. Or that we would go without seeing our best friends and family members when they had once been right there. Maybe – just maybe – there is a light at the end of this tunnel that includes loving ourselves and those around us, just a little (or a lot) more. I think it is safe to say that this is an unprecedented time for our generation. Nothing has impacted the entirety of our country or our world so heavily in our lifetime. Perhaps this can serve as a sign to us, that we are more than capable of standing up and helping those in need when it really comes down to it. We have seen it all over the world: people devoting their time to creating masks for our healthcare workers, companies reallocating their resources in factories to create PPEs, citizens stepping up to help people in their community who are otherwise unable to help themselves. It is incredibly easy to focus on the sadness and destruction and missed plans that have been caused by Covid-19, just as much as it is to focus on how unprepared we were. It is easy to point fingers and to be pissed off. But what is easy is not always what is best.
It is my hope that we can use this time in a way that is beneficial to us all, as a way to be selfless when it would be so much easier to be self-involved. How incredible would it be if we could come out of this in a month (and change) thankful for everything it is that we have? Thankful for the people we love and those who would go out of their way to make us more comfortable when we are incredibly uncomfortable? Thankful for our bodies and our minds, which have allowed us to navigate through a time we thought would be impossible? Let us allow ourselves to see what is good, rather than everything that is bad. Let us wake up every morning and be thankful that we are alive and well and that we are in a place that has provided us shelter and warmth until we can rise again. No matter what is said, please remember that optimism is not naivety. It is okay to believe the positive news, the graphs that portray our best chances of lifted restrictions and return to daily life. Take solace in knowing you are not alone and quite literally, we are all in this together.