The upside of Corona?
As I looked out my front window this morning, watching massively sized unexpected snowflakes fall from the sky just as Spring has commenced, I was struck by the unpredictability of life.
Who could have imagined a couple of months ago that most of us would be living in self-quarantine/isolation mode unable to go to work, school or play for weeks, months or longer? That we would be hesitant and even afraid to stand within 6 feet of a customer at a store, a neighbor on the street or even a family member? That in this day and age of the most advanced medical treatment and knowledge the world has ever seen (helping millions now live beyond 100 years) people would be getting sick by the hundreds of thousands and dying by the thousands with the medical community helpless to stop, curtail or treat it? That our economy – recently called by our “esteemed” President the greatest economy the world has ever seen- could so easily crumble and would be in tatters for likely years?
But as depressing as all of that is, there are some upsides to this crisis if you strain hard enough- and now might be a good time to harness whatever positive thinking we each have in our arsenal to focus on those.
- From difficult times it always seems that heroes emerge and restore faith in mankind/womankind. Nowhere is that more apparent than the selfless nurses and doctors on the front lines treating very sick people with compassion at great personal peril.
- The crisis has caused many folks to look inward and reflect more about their lives, to appreciate what they do have and the amazing people in their lives and to feel gratitude. It’s crazy that it often takes adversity, like being sick and/or near death- or the fear of that- to drive people to appreciate more and be better people, but that’s just how many of us are wired.
- Most of us have more times on our hands than ever before. Many are out of jobs, those who work remotely at least save the travel time to work, and even folks who are in the emergency, health or food industries that still have to go to work physically, have more “free time” since there are no sporting events, entertainment events, kid events, malls, theaters, museums, etc. This extra time presents many opportunities to do things we have put off or say that we never had enough time for – learning a new skill, home projects, reading, writing, creating art or music, developing a business idea, connecting with folks long forgotten, or just reflecting of how we can be better people.
- The predicament caused by this virus also has the ability to provide more clarity about one’s use of time going forward. Many in society, for example, are obsessed with sports (guilty as charged). Some watch a sporting event nearly every night on TV and all weekend long. While watching sports can be great, I wouldn’t personally call it productive time, especially if you are simply watching others move their arms and legs from the vantage point of a couch or bar room stool. It will be interesting to see after all of this ends whether people pick up right where they left off or have any new perspective on their use of time.
- The corona virus has been good for climate change. With very few traveling by plane and far less people on the road (two massive offenders), the reduction of pollutants strewn in the air and the amount of energy expended during this time has got to be considerable. I know that this is just a blip of time in the history of the planet and what needs to be done but the longer it goes on the bigger the silver lining (and perhaps this time “off” will stimulate some great new ideas to stem the tide of climate decline or make folks realize that they can curtail some of their activities for the good of the planet).
- People generally seem nicer to one another. Perhaps folks are more appreciative (as mentioned above) or starved for human feedback or it’s simply the proposition that “misery loves company” at work but folks , for the most part ( sans the selfish hoarders out there), seem more friendly, kind and patient – at least from my limited anecdotal experience.
- It’s been a godsend for our dogs- they are never alone while their masters head off to work or to social events, they go on many more walks and receive a lot more belly rubs and treats. If I were a conspiracy theorist, and looking for the culprit of who started this mess, I might be looking in the direction a very smart dog.
- As bad as this virus is, we are actually very fortunate that it’s not nearly as bad as it could have been. The fear and economic ruin is caused more by the fact that it is highly contagious, and will cause lots of people to be sick, than the number of people who have or likely will die from it. (I am not dismissing the numerous deaths and suffering that has occurred, but whether the death rate is 3.4% or some much smaller # after more folks get tested, the fact is that there are other far more potent viruses potentially out there that could kill at a much higher rate – even 50% of the population or more. Just imagine if that one was our first attempt at dealing with such a crisis). This virus has badly exposed a lot of flaws – administratively, medically and socially; the importance of early detection and testing, the need to have an adequate number of tests readily available and the ability to get the results back without waiting several days, the need for sufficient facilities to house all the people ill from a virus in a pandemic and to have sufficient ventilators and other essential equipment to treat folks, a better way of communicating the problem to citizens and impress upon them the need to follow instructions and a more motivated population to actually listen to the medical experts and adhere top their recommendations. But the good news is that hopefully if and when the next virus comes along- which might be far more deadly- we will be much better equipped to deal with it.
- And I can’t help end with a political note. Perhaps this crisis and all the misinformation spread out there will convince just a smidgen of folks who believe literally everything that the President, Rush and Fox News says as if it came from God himself, to have more of an open mind, to think more critically, and listen to facts, science and actual experts. The triumvirate assured that this wasn’t anything at all to be concerned about, that this was “just like the flu,” that it was just another “hoax” created by the Democrats and the “fly-by media”, and that we should all go out and buy stocks after the first day that the market went down because it was a great time to buy. Regardless of whether you are a Democrat, Republican, Independent, perhaps this will teach everyone to listen to alternative viewpoints for a change (not just the station you always listen to), give credence to the experts who have devoted their education, experience and lives to an issue over a politician or a journalist’s opinion, and learn to think for yourself!
Stay safe all! We will persevere (I hope)!
