3/19 Covid-19 Update: Physical distancing, not social distancing
Evening all,
I'm realizing it's better for everyone if I write these updates in the morning, because my sense of optimism seems to wane as the day goes on. I'm having a hard time finding good news today related to the outbreak - there are now more deaths from covid in Italy than there are in China, the virus is starting to spread quickly across Africa, the # of cases in the US have doubled in the last two days while the Trump Administration continues to sideline the CDC, doctors and nurses in the US are running out of protective gear and are "at war without ammo," people are building field hospitals in Seattle on soccer fields, and people I know personally have now tested positive.
A few weeks ago when the anxiety and fear about what was coming really started to set in for me, my friend Cassie texted me the serenity prayer. I keep going back to it in moments when things start to feel really overwhelming. I'm sure we all probably know it, but just in case:
God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change. The courage to change the things I can. And the wisdom to know the difference.
An author I follow also sent a note about how to "win the day" (obviously this is far too reminiscent of Oregon Athletics & Pete Carroll for my liking, but I still thought it was good):
"There are many questions swirling right now. How long will this last? How will we manage? How will we recover? How worried should I be? Leave it be. Nobody knows the answers. Have the best day you can, today. Win the moment in front of you now. Win the day." - James Clear
I saw something on Twitter the other day about how what we really need right now is physical distancing not social distancing. That feels really true to me. Human connection seems more important than ever. So below are just a few things I've seen that are resources to remind us that we're not alone in this. If you have others to highlight, send them my way!
Sending love to each and every one of you.
Alison
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Ways to stay connected
My friend Jamie is leading a daily digital meditation every weekday at 12pm EST. They're 10-15 minutes and happen on Zoom. Link to join here
So many singers are livestreaming mini concerts from their homes. Ben Gibbard is playing every day at 4pm PST.
If you live in NYC, MutualAid has put together an online volunteer system for picking up groceries/prescriptions for seniors, and calling people who might be stuck inside and just need someone to talk to. I hope this starts to get replicated everywhere.
Recommended Reading:
Still plugging the Bill AMA if you haven't read it yet
How the NBA moved so quickly on coronavirus testing
This has nothing to do with covid, but it made me happy: Washington state's Lt Gov isn't running for reelection because he's going to become a Jesuit priest
Covid-19 Quote of the Day:
Richard Rohr's daily meditation today talks about how nothing is lost in the economy of grace. This can be a teachable moment if we let our suffering move us to greater love:
But for God to reach us, we have to allow suffering to wound us. Now is no time for an academic solidarity with the world. Real solidarity needs to be felt and suffered. That’s the real meaning of the word “suffer” – to allow someone else’s pain to influence us in a real way. We need to move beyond our own personal feelings and take in the whole. This, I must say, is one of the gifts of television: we can turn it on and see how people in countries other than our own are hurting. What is going to happen to those living in isolated places or for those who don’t have health care? Imagine the fragility of the most marginalized, of people in prisons, the homeless, or even the people performing necessary services, such as ambulance drivers, nurses, and doctors, risking their lives to keep society together? Our feelings of urgency and devastation are not exaggeration: they are responding to the real human situation. We’re not pushing the panic button; we are the panic button. And we have to allow these feelings, and invite God’s presence to hold and sustain us in a time of collective prayer and lament. I hope this experience will force our attention outwards to the suffering of the most vulnerable. Love always means going beyond yourself to otherness.
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