These are some interesting times…

Every morning I have to reintroduce myself to this new world in which we are living. This world is hardly recognizable some days. There has been speculation and prediction for years that there might be another pandemic on the horizon. But this COVID-19 virus does not seem to care. It has swept through the population without pause, nor care of our belief in its ability to do so.

I, like so many others, never put much stock into this warning. I honestly never thought I would see this in my lifetime. Or maybe I never truly believed that something this significant could happen at this scale in our times. We seemed to have progressed, both technologically and as a society, passed this type of widespread problem. As a global community, we appeared untouchable. So far above, and removed from nature and disease.

But these are the after times now.

I am so incredibly lucky to live in Canada. For the most part, where I live, we have not been hit by the same widespread, devastating losses that some communities have experienced. The numbers are still quite low compared to many other regions, and for that, I am so grateful.

However, when I watch the daily briefings or read articles, my heart breaks. There are so much chaos and pain throughout the world right now. It seems like the tone and policy changes every day.

I, like so many of you, have been practicing shelter in place for the past couple of weeks. It is how I have been doing my part to slow the spread and flatten the curve. Usually, I would love nothing more than not to have to leave my house, but these circumstances significantly curb my enthusiasm. My anxieties have been racing with all of the what-ifs, and it feels so isolating.

This, coupled with the fact that I am usually a very private person, has left me feeling extremely vulnerable. Social media has been both a blessing and a curse to me. I find it both immensely intrusive and, in these times, a lifeline to others.

I also find myself worrying about my followers. It often seems like a one-way street. I share the breadth of knowledge that I have accumulated, and have garnered much trust, and yet, I still tend to keep a distance. I have built up this barrier largely to shield myself against the trolls, and those who come to do general harm. I so much want to help others and save them from much of the pain that I have had to go through. Yet, there is always that out there who only want to spread pain, possibly to numb or justify their own.

This experience has really inspired me to try to drop some of those defences to let you all in. I hope to increase my posting over this trying time. I want to use this opportunity to share more of myself so that you might get to know me better. In doing this, I hope it will give me a better chance to get to know all of you better. Subscribe to my blog, if you would like to seem more of these personal posts.

I often find myself thinking of what the world will look like once this novel coronavirus has been wrangled into control. It is my hope that we will all bounce back for the better. I hope that this opportunity will teach us that we are a global community, and to be more kind. | also hope that this teaches us to connect more, love more, and live more openly.

I apologize for the sombre tone of this post, but this is just so far outside of what I could have ever imagined happening in my lifetime. Entire countries have closed their borders to the world. Economies are at a standstill, and we have been advised to stay at home. Don’t get me wrong. I am not complaining. I am grateful for a confident leader with a plan, regardless of my personal political beliefs.

All I want to say is, whoever you are, and wherever you are, I hope that you are safe and have everything you need to get through this. Please, stay safe, and take care of yourself. I am thinking of you.