I am not a …

… bystander any longer and will make this one entry into my diary relating to the worlwide concern of Covid-19, and concern is putting it mildly.  It is difficult Not to be affected even though I live in small-town Saskatchewan.  It is not only the virus that is running amok throughout human society, not giving a fuck as to religion, race, gender, or distance, but also panic is running amok.  I feel it in the air, so to speak, and reading a few other entries in OD as well as talking to friends in town and online, I’m not the only one who feels this energy.  It is taking extreme effort not to be swept along with the wave.  As much as we like the instant gratification we live in with technology, we don’t like the speed of which decisions are having to be made by our leaders, who btw are just as human as any one of us.  I cannot even imagine the stress they are going through, again worldwide.  So now, along with global panic, we have stress on top of that.  Families who live paycheque to paycheque worry how they will feed their families if stores are empty, so add worry to the equation.  Let’s see … what else?  Oh right, the scientists who are desperately trying to find a vaccine for Covid-19, so add desperation to the equation as well.  “In this time of uncertainty” – how many emails have I received that start with that, so we can use uncertainty as the wildcard in our equation.   Panic + stress + worry + desperation + uncertainty = fear …. pretty straightforward and obvious.  Our planet is running on fear right now.  Fear is a normal human emotion and one most of us don’t like to feel, but it’s also an emotion that keeps us safe.  That’s why borders are closing and self-isolation is recommended and so on.  My opinion however, is that humanity Must manage this fear, and we are smart enough to know how to do that.  The ONLY way for that to happen however, is one person at a time.  I am one person.  I have written what I needed to write.  I am a part of the whole, and my part is to Not live in fear of Covid-19 and all the circumstances unfolding because of it.  I believe if each one of us across the planet, manages their fear by even 1%, we will see a difference in how the virus spreads.  Think about it … what if that’s all it takes?  Now the next question is, how does one manage fear?  Gratitude, appreciation, kindness, etc.  Find what works to calm the fear inside you.  This is our chance as a species to globally come together and make a change, one person at a time.