change is scary

I’ve been wanting to post about the current state of our world for a few weeks now. Some “snippets” of writing have been saved in my evolving journal and a bit of random reflections sketched-out in sort-of blog posts, but nothing that has really stuck. Hopefully, this one sticks.

What brought me to this point are a couple things. Firstly, I’ve had some interesting text exchanges with a good friend of mine regarding the suffocating topic of COVID-19 – it can infect conversations like it infects our respiratory system. Secondly, simply going through my social media newsfeeds have garnered me a chilling look at the naiveté that is sprouting up like noxious weeds. But my takeaway from these text messages and social media broadcasts are that underlying fear of change, masked as conspiracy theories, generalizations and media blame that play out behind the scenes of this rona-arching ordeal.

Let’s face it, change is scary.

a hint of beauty

I get it. This whole coronavirus thing has unleashed havoc on our normalcy, and frankly, I too, am scared of all this change. Yet, I feel like we are being blinded by its tragedy and not opening our eyes to the opportunity this experience could potentially have on our WORLD. I don’t know, maybe I’m a hippie optimistic, but I see a hint of beauty in this situation. So, when people (my good friend & social media bamboozlers) share their conspiracy theory, political corruption, negative-media influence rhetoric, I struggle with the pessimism, yet am open to the fight against it.

Do I think there is “some” malfeasance showing itself through influentially uninformed and irresponsible humans who play a heavy role in this shitshow crisis? I do. But not at some weird conspiracy theory level, all politicians are evil and corrupt, and the media is the biggest part of the problem way. I just look at it like, we fucked with nature and nature is giving us the metaphorical middle finger, and we need to heed this warning, pay attention and solve the issue by leading with innovation supported by compassion, kindness and empathy. That’s it.

Sure, it’s fair to seek answers and to uncover the whys, and it’s also fair to place culpability where it is due. But, an over consumption of the blame game, the whys and generalizations also box us in to a narrow-minded way of thinking, and we become reactive, not proactive.

it’s uncomfortable

Look, we have found ourselves in an uncomfortable place, our freedoms feel endangered, normalcy has flown the coop, and these shenanigans have twisted us into a braided mess. Our shortsightedness drives behaviors like panic buying and hoarding, people actively seek out conspiracy theories, claiming political hoaxes and giving in to ideas of government and media control. This has some seeking out any and all justifications; and some of those justifications are downright idiotic.

And those conjured up generalizations? Well, they’re extremely dangerous. When you make generalizations, you cultivate small-minded perspectives, which is a firestarter for untruths, distortions and ideologies that further drive dogmatic logic… wait, is that an oxymoron? Indeed. We’ve become lost. The light has dimmed or is non-existent and truth is nowhere to be found, at least we don’t think so.

So, instead of doing anything and everything to not feel uncomfortable, we should acknowledge the suck and embrace it at the simplest level. The simplest level is this… it is what it is, and it really blows, so now what?

How about joining forces, doing our part by channeling our innate (yes, innate) human kindness and begin solving these problems and issues that have plagued us way before this pandemic. In fact, this “pandemic” is part of the solution – this virus has painted a picture of all that is infecting our society (pun intended), excluding the virus itself. We’re looking at this all wrong. To me, it seems simple enough, but yet it’s far from it.

But the unfortunate truth is this, we are self-absorbed, gluttonous over consumers who live in a how does this affect only me society. We are an impatient culture, who want it now and for next to nothing. We are extremely judgmental yet overly sensitive. And those characteristics are just the tip of the iceberg.

it’s just a hoax

Which leads me to the whole blame the media for invoking fear angle or having this voodoo mind control over us. Not sure about you, but the news outlets I watch/read actually advise against panicking and hoarding yet acknowledge the severity of the issue. They report on scientific data and research provided by the experts. They promote healthy social distancing practices and reiterate the importance of community. Not to mention that it’s our individual responsibility to consume the news in a balanced manner – watching/reading more than just one source, fact checking, sifting through misinformation and always seeking truth even if it goes against an embedded ideal. Please, don’t turn to Facebook for your go-to news – leave Crackbook for funny memes (keep ’em coming people!) and all that feel-good shit.

Then there’s the conspiracy theory and governmental control angle. I did a quick Google search about coronavirus conspiracy theories and came across a few stories that highlight the unnerving fact that a third of our population believe this virus came out of a lab. Or, this pandemic is a “police state tactic” and some form of governmental control. I’m actually not sure what to think about this – the trail of damage this virus has done on a global scale doesn’t even logically lend itself to this form of thinking. Sure, we could possibly entertain the whole lab gig, but again, let’s look at how we are as a global community. We take from and do what we want with nature – drill for oil, genetically modify food, tear down ecosystems – killing off species, pollute our oceans (and air) at a catastrophic level, and unfortunately the list goes on – nature is just responding without any sympathy. In fact, I think it’s karmic.

And if we want to talk conspiracy theory/governmental control, how’s this… using a pandemic to suppress voting and/or access to reproductive health rights. We’ve politicized this issue, which further clouds problem solving.

WE need each other

Honestly, I struggle with who we are. I struggle with our assholish ways. Because we’re literally in this together. That’s really powerful and should be connecting us, however some of us are resistant to not just science but common fucking sense, and although that ‘some of us’ is the minority, those humans have the loudest bark and the most infectious bite. Riddle me that?!

So, let’s stop giving that minority the energy – let’s feed positive change and nurture a culture built on humanity, love and kindness. Let’s move through this uncomfortable feeling with a respect and understanding of the process – we won’t ever go without problems, but we can learn how to navigate them better.

What if… WE just worked together?

WE could be unstoppable and nip this in the bud by applying care and proactive measures in the vein of community and environmental stewardship. WE could nurture and repair our planet and foster human connection on a global scale. WE could not only learn more about ourselves but also about each other.

Patience would be our new norm and a philanthropic mindset would be the contagion, not COVID-19.

Remember: WE are in this together. Let’s act like it.

Peace.