Historic Paddy’s Day

It’s a day for the wearin’ o’ the green, whether you have Irish heritage or only wish you did.  This day is normally celebrated with parades, rivers being dyed green, buildings having green lights shown upon them, and of course green beer.

This year, the pubs in Ireland are closed.  Yes, you heard that right – all the pubs are closed.  So are schools, universities, and day care centers – all by government decree. Restaurants are likely to follow soon (I wonder if that includes pizza deliveries?).

There will be no St. Patrick’s parades in Ireland, they’ve all been cancelled along with concerts, theatres (plays/musical), sporting events and any gatherings over 100 people indoors and over 500 outdoors, which includes church services.

This may all be happening in your town, city, state, or country.  The Coronavirus (Covid-19) has got the world by the short hairs.

People are panic buying (72 rolls of toilet paper, really?), enough pasta to last a few years (did you remember to buy the sauces to go with it?), and bucket loads of cleaning products (do you plan on squirting Lysol/Dettol/(insert your country’s favorite germ killing product here) on anyone/anything that comes near your door?

A co-worker told me he saw a woman purchase 5 boxes of garlic.  I believe this is a flu-like virus, not a vampire invasion.

I went to the pharmacy yesterday to pick up some allergy meds.  Now, I live in a relatively small town and this pharmacy is on the small side – maybe a dozen people could squish in on a good day (including staff), but only one person at a time was allowed in the shop – the rest of us queued outside, mostly standing the requested 1 metre (3ft) apart.

Are you contributing to the fear by stockpiling enough supplies to get you through an apocalypse?  Are you in a panic that you’ve either lost your job or may lose your job as more businesses close?  If that happens will you lose your house?  Can you productively work with the children home from school?

Maybe it’s time to take a step back.

Viruses and other diseases latch on to healthy cells and seek to destroy or weaken them.  Covid-19 has taken ordinary, healthy in body (and mostly in mind) people and turned them into fear mongering lunatics.  It seems hell bent on destroying large sections of the world economy.

Is the fear and panic feeding the virus and making it stronger?

Instead of projecting your fear out into the world, why not send out some love.  Send a message to the virus – call it prayer if that fits your spiritual modality.  Say, thank you, Covid-19 (no, I’ve not lost my marbles, please hear me out).  Thank you for pointing out the deficiencies in the assorted global health systems and health related supply chains.  Thank you for showing just how many people can productively work from home – particularly for employers who once frowned on the practice. Thank you for all the people who, instead of jumping on the fear bandwagon, have blossomed into their kindest selves – people who are delivering supplies to the elderly and infirm who either can’t get out or it’s too high risk to get out; the people who are checking on their neighbors and elderly relatives; the people who are helping travelers get home as they become stranded on cruise ships and in areas no longer served by airlines.  Thank you for showing us that many governments, banks, employers, landlords, and organizations are willing to do what they can to help people affected by the crisis, even if it puts them in debt.  Thank you for shining a light on the selflessness of health workers around the world who risk infection, because they were born to serve.

As you finish your intentions/prayers, send the virus healing, loving thoughts.  It has done its job of pointing out our weaknesses so we may begin to fix them.  It’s time for it to depart.

Events such as these bring out the worst in people but also the best in people.  Make sure it’s bringing out the best in you.  Don’t stop taking precautionary measures such as hand washing and keeping distances from potentially infected people, but don’t feed the fear monster, either.  We are most powerful when we work together and if we can get more people sending loving, healing thoughts to the virus and the world, the sooner it will depart.

Blessings to you and yours.

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