There is an invisible virus threatening the future of the human race and we have been plunged into a fearful state of denial and in disbelief, while trying our hardest to come to terms with what that means for us as individuals and also for the collective human race.
We are now prevented from seeing our loved ones, meaning our parents, grandparents, siblings as well as friends colleagues and neighbours, guidelines stating we need to be at least two metres away from each other at all times.
A man I passed in the street the other day said, as I was giving him a wide berth, “I feel like a leper” and I replied, “We don’t know who has it so I am acting to make sure I don’t give it to anyone”
It’s happening all over the world, and we all seek answers, but no-one has any.
Recently a tiger tested positive!
How do we deal with something like this, something so unfamiliar, so life threatening and so confusing?
I wish I had the answers, when I sat down and thought about it all I wanted to do was hide, to run away so I didn’t have to deal with it.
At all.
That was scary for me because my first thought is usually to get out there, deal with what needs to be dealt with and then sit back and reflect.
My not wanting to deal with this left me feeling even more confused and scared.
My first place to go when I feel threatened, unsure or faced with a difficult situation is to ask, “What is the worst case scenario?”
I like to have an answer to that one, because that’s not the most likely outcome, and if you have that one sussed, you can deal with anything else.
“Someone I love could die, or I could die” I didn’t like the answers I was coming up so my response altered to what was I taught in first aid.
First and foremost, assess the situation, you have to make sure it is safe for you to go into this situation.
Here is my recollection of an event from 1983. There was a man walking his dog along Blackpool beach, and like dogs the world over, he swam out to get his ball, further than he should have and his owner panicked and went in after him when it wasn’t safe to do so.
Three police officers then went in after the dog owner and none of the four ever returned. The dog, however, swam back to shore. Sad but true.
It’s called ‘daisy chain first aid’ when our first reaction is to rush in to help, without considering if it is safe to do so.
It was a situation that went badly wrong and didn’t have to be so tragic.
Our results depend on the choices we make and choices are best made from a place of calm, although this isn’t always possible.
When strange things happen our bodies go into an alert state of mind, to give us extra strength to deal with the situation. This, as you know, we call stress. And a stressed body produces hormones like adrenalin to allow us to fight the unknown and survive.
We have the essential workers: the supermarket staff, the refuse collectors and everyone in healthcare working full pelt. We have the non-food shops, the banks, the leisure centres and the architects closed and all told to stay at home.
These people are stressed in different ways. The essential workers are front line, facing their fears and being kept very busy. Wearing suitable clothing when it’s available to keep themselves safe, and being applauded by the country for doing so. These people are focussing on the job in hand and working long hours to deal with the urgency of the current crises. They deal with their stress mainly through their actions; however I am sure they have a lot of reflective thoughts when they are off duty.
We have many others who while not working on the front lines, have found their lives turned upside down too. Those who once went daily into an office but now able to work from home, those who have suddenly found that their work is closed, those who have been furloughed, or even sacked.
These people had what probably seemed like important things to do yesterday and are now facing life on their own, dealing with an uncertain future, financial disruption and lack of contact with loved ones. They are facing a different challenge, one that comes with suddenly spending time with yourself.
If work was their reason for getting out of bed in the morning, it can be a struggle for them to do just that.
And there are the people who see this extraordinary time of our lives as an opportunity.
For me I look at how we were over consuming and destroying our planet, I hope some people are conjuring up a better future, looking at new ways to do things in light of the changes that have been forced upon us. How do we keep the best of the past together with the best of the present?
Maybe we don’t all have to commute to the office but need to have a better wifi connection?
Maybe we can make a better use of technology?
Maybe we don’t need to travel as much and appreciate the beauty of our homeland?
Maybe we all can realise that working to make money to buy material things is not the best plan for our lives and the planet?
Maybe we look at what is important in life through a new set of eyes?
Whether you are still working as before, albeit with new CoVid19 precautions, feeling a bit isolated or planning how your life and your business can evolve into our new future, one thing is for sure, these challenging times are teaching us about life and what we are truly value.
Think about what you can let go of that has been a bind for you in the past and what you want to invite in for your future.
When we can open our doors and get out and about again, what will you have done in this space we’ve been given that’s going to change your world for the better?
I Want To Hide
What happened?
There is an invisible virus threatening the future of the human race and we have been plunged into a fearful state of denial and in disbelief, while trying our hardest to come to terms with what that means for us as individuals and also for the collective human race.
We are now prevented from seeing our loved ones, meaning our parents, grandparents, siblings as well as friends colleagues and neighbours, guidelines stating we need to be at least two metres away from each other at all times.
A man I passed in the street the other day said, as I was giving him a wide berth, “I feel like a leper” and I replied, “We don’t know who has it so I am acting to make sure I don’t give it to anyone”
It’s happening all over the world, and we all seek answers, but no-one has any.
Recently a tiger tested positive!
How do we deal with something like this, something so unfamiliar, so life threatening and so confusing?
I wish I had the answers, when I sat down and thought about it all I wanted to do was hide, to run away so I didn’t have to deal with it.
At all.
That was scary for me because my first thought is usually to get out there, deal with what needs to be dealt with and then sit back and reflect.
My not wanting to deal with this left me feeling even more confused and scared.
My first place to go when I feel threatened, unsure or faced with a difficult situation is to ask, “What is the worst case scenario?”
I like to have an answer to that one, because that’s not the most likely outcome, and if you have that one sussed, you can deal with anything else.
“Someone I love could die, or I could die” I didn’t like the answers I was coming up so my response altered to what was I taught in first aid.
First and foremost, assess the situation, you have to make sure it is safe for you to go into this situation.
Here is my recollection of an event from 1983. There was a man walking his dog along Blackpool beach, and like dogs the world over, he swam out to get his ball, further than he should have and his owner panicked and went in after him when it wasn’t safe to do so.
Three police officers then went in after the dog owner and none of the four ever returned. The dog, however, swam back to shore. Sad but true.
It’s called ‘daisy chain first aid’ when our first reaction is to rush in to help, without considering if it is safe to do so.
It was a situation that went badly wrong and didn’t have to be so tragic.
Our results depend on the choices we make and choices are best made from a place of calm, although this isn’t always possible.
When strange things happen our bodies go into an alert state of mind, to give us extra strength to deal with the situation. This, as you know, we call stress. And a stressed body produces hormones like adrenalin to allow us to fight the unknown and survive.
We have the essential workers: the supermarket staff, the refuse collectors and everyone in healthcare working full pelt. We have the non-food shops, the banks, the leisure centres and the architects closed and all told to stay at home.
These people are stressed in different ways. The essential workers are front line, facing their fears and being kept very busy. Wearing suitable clothing when it’s available to keep themselves safe, and being applauded by the country for doing so. These people are focussing on the job in hand and working long hours to deal with the urgency of the current crises. They deal with their stress mainly through their actions; however I am sure they have a lot of reflective thoughts when they are off duty.
We have many others who while not working on the front lines, have found their lives turned upside down too. Those who once went daily into an office but now able to work from home, those who have suddenly found that their work is closed, those who have been furloughed, or even sacked.
These people had what probably seemed like important things to do yesterday and are now facing life on their own, dealing with an uncertain future, financial disruption and lack of contact with loved ones. They are facing a different challenge, one that comes with suddenly spending time with yourself.
If work was their reason for getting out of bed in the morning, it can be a struggle for them to do just that.
And there are the people who see this extraordinary time of our lives as an opportunity.
For me I look at how we were over consuming and destroying our planet, I hope some people are conjuring up a better future, looking at new ways to do things in light of the changes that have been forced upon us. How do we keep the best of the past together with the best of the present?
Maybe we don’t all have to commute to the office but need to have a better wifi connection?
Maybe we can make a better use of technology?
Maybe we don’t need to travel as much and appreciate the beauty of our homeland?
Maybe we all can realise that working to make money to buy material things is not the best plan for our lives and the planet?
Maybe we look at what is important in life through a new set of eyes?
Whether you are still working as before, albeit with new CoVid19 precautions, feeling a bit isolated or planning how your life and your business can evolve into our new future, one thing is for sure, these challenging times are teaching us about life and what we are truly value.
Think about what you can let go of that has been a bind for you in the past and what you want to invite in for your future.
When we can open our doors and get out and about again, what will you have done in this space we’ve been given that’s going to change your world for the better?
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