Where have the last two years gone? It’s been a time filled with anxiety, sadness, isolation and global events we’ve never envisioned would happen in our lifetimes.
Very reluctantly, I have to start with the Covid-19 pandemic. We’ve all heard about the Spanish flu of 1918. In our minds we’ve always thought it must have been a terrible time, but would remain comfortably in the past. |
It was hard to conceive that up to 50 million people died during that pandemic.
Note of interest here. Although we have accounts of the Spanish flu, it really is just one of several older pandemics that decimated humanity. At least 13 that I know of. It seems that pandemics ( severe illness that spreads to other countries) are regular historical events.
Heck, it’s hard to believe it was actually a flu virus. Folks called it the purple death. That’s because people had a purple skin when they died. But apparently scientists have been able to determine it was the flu.
And you know what happened to the smoking thing. People left that in droves, once they believed in the science that it kills you.
We wear masks now. It’s mandatory in our neck of the woods. All the time when we go out. Sometimes you don’t even recognize your friends and neighbours when you meet them while shopping. In the supermarket there is a weird hush as everyone goes their own way, with little acknowledgement of each other’s presence. We used to smile at one another. But those masks do more than cover your nose and mouth. They blur communication. Worse still, they often seem to hinder even the wish to communicate.
Put all this together, and many folks are in dire straits these days. At first it didn’t seem so bad. But when you’ve been carefully following the science that says you can have so many remedies for this, that and the other, that you should have the vaccine, no, sorry, two doses, no, sorry again, you need a booster shot as well, it just becomes a bit too much for your head to take.
But maybe this is the time when we really have to dig deep within ourselves. Time to focus on helping our fellow folks who might be having a worse time than ourselves at this point. They’re all around you, no matter how bad things are for you. Because Christmas is an excellent time to remember others, in your thoughts and deeds.
Covid-19 has wreaked destruction on so many small businesses. It’s a sad thing when you drive by them and realize just how many have not survived.
This Christmas is an important time to help your local small businesses be able to continue. Visit craft fairs, anything local. We’re all in this together.
How are you planning for Christmas 2021? Maybe stay safe - so hard when reminders of the pandemic continue, but do it anyway. Technology helps everyone to stay in touch, even if you sacrifice physical presence this year.
Your greatest gift to others will be to follow the science and your local orders. Be an example. Please.
May your Christmas be better than you thought! Share your thoughts on this below if you care to.
And always, thanks for reading!