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  • Columnist Reflects on What Lessons We Can Glean from this Pandemic

    Posted by kevin-schaefer on April 10, 2020 at 7:00 am

    My apologies for the wordy title of this post. I tried to summarize the idea of Bailey’s latest column.

    I found this piece to be really provocative. In spite of everything going on with the COVID-19 crisis, the upside is that we’re able to slow down a bit. Bailey writes about how she’s now able to spend more time with family, and can do virtual medical appointments. With so much negativity out there, it helps to find silver linings. Like Bailey said, I too hope our culture can learn to slow down once all this is over.

    Do you have any takeaways from this column?

    paul-met-debbie replied 4 years ago 1 Member · 1 Reply
  • 1 Reply
  • paul-met-debbie

    Member
    April 16, 2020 at 10:34 am

    It is good to think twice about going back to “normality” after this Pandemic. For the whole world, and for every one of us (together we are the whole world). How normal was our normality? This little virus shows us with merciless grace how unnatural our living habits have become. We have to do a serious reset and reconsideration of almost all our ways of life.

    If you are grateful for the things that this crisis has brought to you, realize that this is the way Grace works. For you, and for everybody. Grace works in mysterious ways. Who would have thought of this happening with all of its consequences a few months ago? When we thought we were stuck in our unhealthy and unhappy ways and nothing could be changed about that – and look at us now, lots of changes are simply imposed upon us. What seemed to be cast in stone, turned out to be written in water only.

    Don’t feel guilty about the changes you like. Just honor both the feelings of compassion for those that have been hard struck by this crisis and feel grateful for the opportunities that suddenly arise for you and for everyone. There is no contradiction here. This is how nature works. It comes in pairs of seeming opposites that are actually One. Go with it. Guilt is never the way to go.

    Sure there are bills to pay – but that does not mean that you cannot seriously consider which and how many bills are worth creating with your lifestyle. A simpler lifestyle mostly creates less and smaller bills. For many people a reason to look into minimalism, tiny houses, moving away into less expensive and more rural areas of the world, etc.

    If you doubt your powers to change the world, remember the words of Ghandi: You must be the change you want to see in the world. All of us are as essential as the Whole – we are the Whole. Take small steps if needed, but take them! If we all change today, tomorrow will be a new world. If we follow the grace that it bestowed upon us, nature is working with us. Let’s cooperate for a change! Your intuition knows exactly how.

    Namaste,
    Paul

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