A Slow but Sure (I Hope) Ten Things

Back in the halcyon days of “Coming to Terms,” I had a vehicle called “Ten Things.”  It sprang out of my compulsion to continue to write even when I had no time or little motivation to do so.  There were always little scraps of ideas circling like a whirlwind in my brain, and the only way for me to have peace was to let them out, even if I hadn’t the time to fully develop them into finished, fleshy essays.   

In these bizarre days of COVID19, I’ve once again found myself with whirlwinds of ideas crashing around in my brain, and the apparent inability to catch any single one and develop it into anything resembling a coherent essay.  And it’s not that I don’t have the time; I have nothing but time.  I just can’t seem to tap into a strong, consistent stream of motivation.  My defense against anxiety has manifested as avoidance of deep thinking of any kind.  If I focus on anything enough to try to make sense of it, I’m in danger of falling into the hole of paralyzing fear out of which I so recently dragged myself.

So “Ten Things” looks like the path forward.  And I’m going to start with baby steps, and only concentrate on churning out ONE per day. 

Let’s do this:

Ten Things About COVID-19

1.)We are a nation of spoiled, entitled children. We don’t want to be told “no.”  We don’t want to be told, “You have to do this to this in consideration of others.”  We are the center of the universe…all things revolve around our wants, our needs, our comfort. This isn’t new…it’s been going on at least since the early 2000’s. It’s one of the chief reasons I got OUT of the restaurant business in 2011—I simply could not tolerate the attitude of 21^st century customers.

And it’s one of the chief reasons Trump’s denial and avoidance of the pandemic has resonated with a larger portion of the American citizenry than any of us wants to contemplate.  People want COVID-19 to go away, or better yet, to never have happened. They want their privileged, entitled lives—to the extent that they were privileged and entitled—to go on exactly as they have been for the past few decades.  Laws are not for them; responsibility is not for them; ignore ugly things and they just *poof* fade away.  Even better when national “leadership” broadcasts that narrative from the highest levels of government.  SO easy to choose that reality and run with it.  “The President of the United States says it, so it must be okay.  He wouldn’t say anything that wasn’t true or that might be dangerous to his citizens.”   Actually, I don’t think folks even reason it that far.  They just hear what they want to hear and create their reality around it.

COVID-19 isn’t going to go magically away.  And even when it does finally recede—IF it ever does recede—there is likely to be another pandemic close on its heels.  It is going to be a national disaster of historic proportions.  It already is.

But, here’s the thing:

Disasters serve to make drastic changes to a culture, to a nation, to a people. 

Like the disaster of World War II, they can make us better people.  Leaders can step up and lead with courage.  People can work together for the common good.  We can become closer, stronger, braver, more determined to create a better world for ourselves and our children.

Or, like the disaster of 9/11, they can tear us down.  Leaders can exploit the fear of the people; manipulate the horror to sow hatred, racism, xenophobia, distrust…TERROR.  Serve their own ambitions and agenda by making the people afraid and causing them to trade their rights and freedoms, even their lives, for “protection.” 

It’s a matter of leadership.  Who’s in charge?  Are they guiding the nation on how to step up to the challenge?  Or are they exploiting it for their own gain?

I don’t think I have to tell you what direction we’re heading with the COVID-19 disaster.

Truth to tell, we were already in the middle of a long, slow, inevitable disaster when COVID-19 came along.

Doesn’t bode well for us, does it?