Recently, a friend of mine shared his position on the current events of today. As an African-American living during these times of uncertainty he said, "We do so much better when we come together. We are all better together. Why can't we come together and make everyplace better?" He continued, "It bothers me when people on the street won't even say hello and they avoid eye contact. We should try to help someone in need, and help them out." It brought to my mind a time when America stood together. Sunday, May 25, 1986, approximately 5 to 6.5 million people held hands for fifteen minutes to show unity by forming a human chain (symbolically) across the United States
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hands_Across_America).
How can we be united when we are so divided? Our leaders are in such opposition that the innocent are being trampled on and are literally dying in the streets. The family can't find any relief because of Covid-19 forcing our lives to come to a screeching halt. We have become a society where distraction has become our only coping mechanism and there is plenty of negative challenges to keep our focus. But it is not healthy to look through the dismal lens of those motivated by hate. Everywhere people are angry, frustrated, and afraid. Many feel they will be cited, arrested, or even beaten for not living in a totalitarian society of forced compliance implemented by unrealistic expectations, limitations, and hopeless solutions that do more harm than offer hope.
The good news is you have more things to look positive at than you realize. Take an inventory of your life. Turn off the TV, the radio, and the social media long enough to look at your life, your family, your circumstances. What can you control? Can you still hold your family in your arms? Can you feed your children? Are you able to work and if not, are you receiving stimulus money to enable you to remain in your home? Do you have the ability to call a friend, talk to your parents, and go for a walk? There are many things in our lives that have not been changed, and yes, many things look different. I think one of the things that has changed did not need to change: We can still stand with our loved ones, bring hope to those who have suffered by the changes, and look someone in the eye and say, "Hello." You might be the hope that someone desperately needs. I believe, like my friend, that we are all better together.