Coronavirus and the Global Community
I was thirteen when Hurricane Katrina changed my life. I lived on the Mississippi Gulf Coast in a small town called Pass Christian, and the hurricane devastated us. I’m talking house, cars, school, family photos & scrapbooks, soccer games, normalcy — gone before I could even realize I’d miss them.
It’s known that communities come together after natural disasters. We also saw the whole country pitch in to help my little town. Each week, more aid workers in orange vests visited my makeshift FEMA trailer school bringing school supplies and cleaning up the aftermath.
At 13, I witnessed strangers come together to grieve the loss of their normal. I watched people come together to rebuild their lives, leaning on each other when they couldn’t see the light and celebrating each other’s successes no matter how small.
More than a decade later on the biggest scale possible, we are all grieving the loss of our normal. Now more than ever, we are able to connect as a global community. Regardless of nationality, age, race, or gender identity, we are in this together. We are all affected.
Instead of aid workers in orange vests like during Katrina, we are looking to the doctors, nurses, social workers, employees of the supermarkets & gas stations, mail deliverers, and countless others who keep our society running in the face of this pandemic.
When I think of being of service within a global community, my first reaction is a feeling of smallness, that I don’t have the resources or ability to make positive change on that scale. Yet I realize now that it starts with one or two small gestures that ripple out into the world. This reminds me of the Dalai Lama quote:
“If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito.”
As we sit in isolation in our homes, I invite you to ask yourself, “How can I be of service?”
Here are some ideas to get you started:
· Call a friend or relative who lives alone
· Take time to create something and share it with the world (i.e. writing, artwork, a piece of music)
· Support your favorite local business by buying a gift card
· Learn how to compost & plant a garden — an act of service to the Earth
· Donate to an organization doing good
· Smile to strangers, especially while grocery shopping
· Practice meditation and look inward
Brainstorm what you can do and comment your ideas below. Writing your ideas down and reading them out loud to a close friend, partner, or family member creates accountability and support. Share this article with your friends via email or social media to spread the word of doing good one small act of kindness at a time.
