Take a moment and think back to December 31, 2019. It’s really not all that long ago. What were you doing? What were you feeling? For many, we were all wrapping up the holiday season and looking forward, with anticipation, to the newness that would come in 2020. Little did we know that “newness” would come in the form of a global pandemic that would change our world in ways we couldn’t imagine.
So far, in 2020, it almost feels like the whole world has been turned upside down – as if someone took the little floating ball we live on and gave it a good shake. As we have searched for our new “normal” (whatever that might be these days), we have been forced to learn what this new life looks like and with that, how we might start adjusting to the changes that come our way due to COVID-19. We have learned what is means to distance ourselves from others. Some of us have had to learn new strategies with respect to working from home. Sadly, many of us have had to learn the process of filing for unemployment and many of us have had to learn how to deal with new levels of anxiety.
It is no secret that our lives have changed, and as is often the case, change can be difficult. With all of these new things happening in our lives over the last couple months, it’s very easy to get bogged down by thoughts of negativity, and unfortunately, negative thought have a tendency to ripple. It may seem like there is nothing ‘good’ happening in the world. Just look at the news or jump online – all we see is the rising death count, the rising unemployment numbers, and a collective anxiety among health care workers and governmental officials. With that focus, it is easy to let that ripple of negativity grow. We all see it, we all feel it, probably in ways that we’ve not experienced negativity before. It is, in a word, scary. But, luckily for us, it doesn’t have to be that way. Positivity also has a ripple effect. It just takes an intentional focus on goodness. So, with that, let’s pause. Let’s slow down. Let’s look around. Let’s notice things. There IS goodness in our world. In fact, it’s all around us. Despite a global pandemic and one of the scariest times in recent history, there is good happening. If we just take a moment to pause, we’ll find it.
For example, this virus has shown us how interconnected we really are in our world. It has, quite literally, brought us closer together even though we are physically distancing ourselves from one another. We can communicate via phone, text, email and other technologies that allow us to connect with our friends and family from anywhere in the world. We have seen the images from Italy and New York of spontaneous music and singing from resident’s balconies. We have seen the images of crowds of people honking their horns out of respect for health-care workers as they leave their shift for some well-deserved rest. We have seen neighbors helping neighbors by dropping off groceries for those that can’t get to the grocery store. We have been able to truly connect with family members on a much deeper level. Heck, families across the world have probably successfully completed more puzzles together than at any other time in our history.
This pandemic has brought countless changes to our lives. Changes that have forced us to live differently. Changes that have made it easier to focus on negativity. The start of 2020 has been anything but normal. It took a global pandemic to bring the world together against a common enemy. But, when do we get that kind of opportunity? Be grateful for the chance to realize the goodness that is happening all over our world. Know that it’s everywhere. Also know that it’s there not only to find, it’s also there to create.