Maybe we don’t think enough about thinking, but we do know enough not to get in our own way.
International media that we’ve seen has story after story on how to stay home and still be an effective parent; how to let your creative-self explode into a mosaic of latent talent; how to get over the human need to touch people; how to make a can of soup taste like a can of soup; how to flourish in unwanted social withdrawal; and other choice stories about what really doesn’t apply to living well.
Why not thrive in a nutritious isolation? Is whining the best we’ve got?
We, in our office, understand the concern, but not the anger. One of us had enough introspection, or wine, to say, “Maybe Trump wants us to kill each other so he’ll think he’s loved.”
Doesn’t matter. We’re in a state of confusion because the lines are drawn – it’s as if we either wear a mask, respect others’ space, perhaps lather our body in soap and hot water then wrap ourselves from head-to-toe in toilet paper, or think this calamity is a hoax.
There doesn’t seem to be much room for compromise or agile thinking because our heads are full of misinformation, misconceptions, fear and intolerance. Gracious, wouldn’t it be something if we remembered how we were back in 2019? Only surgeons and Adrian Monk washed their hands thoughtfully. The rest of us washed up before we ate and after we gardened, but nothing like this.
This virus is sinister, no doubt about that, but assuming it came from the Chinese, chemtrails, sin, Democrats or pythons is as artless as the constipated smile you get from those who think it’s a government bluff. This virus is basically a teeny container of tricks that convinces a cell to make thousands of genetic copies until the cells explode, allowing the virus to go to war with lungs and hearts.
We’re all in the same predicament. All 7.8 billion of us, every single person in this world, appears to be susceptible to this virus that weighs a billionth of a gram. This information is bringing us to the verge of worry, yet we’ve ridden the feral mustangs of SARS (two dozen countries affected) MERS (27 countries) and AIDS (159 countries). Of the 247 countries and territories in the world, 92 percent have Covid-19 in their population today, but didn’t three months ago.
This virus is having its way with us and we are uncertain what to do. What we do know is people have cabin fever and are willing to risk the unknown to get back into the slow lane.
Those who wear masks in group surroundings, like the grocery store, understand that you don’t use your hands to break up a dog fight. You use your head and keep yourself from getting bit. Bitten. You protect yourself.
If we love others as much as we claim to, we might keep our distance. If we’re walking or driving, there’s no need for a mask unless we really like a sock in our mouth. Around strangers who stand too close (bus depot), yeah, either wear a mask or don’t go there. Whether it’s helpful or useless, a mask does help us keep our things to ourselves.
And if all this is a conspiracy, who wouldn’t want to be masked?