Science states that “it is almost evident that compassion is innate in us, and history proves it. The natural human desire to help others is obvious. Disasters bring us together because our innate truth is that we are born to be heroes to the less fortunate; we will survive COVID 19. And in this article, there are at least a dozen reasons to show how we will get through the second wave of coronavirus and why we reach out to those who have suffered the most.
THE LAST FOUR MONTHS OF STRESS
Morning arrives, but the sky is dark as night. Where is the sunrise? You look at your phone. It’s 7:00 a.m., and you slowly sit up, turning on the nightstand light, but it’s not working. It’s creepy. Wait, there is usually noise, Brian usually has the morning news on getting ready for work at this time?
You look at your phone again, yes, it’s 7:00 a.m. Pausing with a strange feeling, you realize you can’t move, it’s a dream! Whew, thank god—your mind races in that foggy state. And you’re talking to the cloudy void about waking up in the middle of a dream, while still dreaming!
Suddenly your eyes open; you’re standing in front of the refrigerator. Shit, you’re now a sleepwalker? It’s 2:00 a.m. Your head is splitting. “Omg, I’m now a sleepwalker!”
Breathing deeply, you slide down the refrigerator to the floor where you sit for the next 20 minutes thinking about the chaos. You have a loved one with COVID 19, you’ve not worked for 2 months, the news is too sad and confusing to watch, and you’ve been stuck inside for months. Now you’re a sleep-walking zombie!
THE WAVES OF VIOLENCE ARE TAKING THEIR TOLL
Our lives have consistently fallen into uncommon emotional upheaval, and unless we have support, we’ll helplessly fall by the hand of confusion, fear, and what now has become realistic nightmares for many.
Generally, the more we try not to worry, the more “exhausted” our logical minds become. No one knows for sure what’s happening with coronavirus. And it might seem impossible to make sense of it. Especially, while the world drowns in the pandemic while on top of it, a bloody racial rebellion strikes.
I have never once in my life looked at the color of a person’s skin, title, or status as some scale of judgment, so to make sense of violence on top of deaths becomes almost too much. But it’s not the pandemic stirring the protests and violence, these cultural wars raged prior to COVID 19. The pandemic was, in fact, dropped in the middle of ongoing racial conflicts. We are merely getting used to blaming everything on a virus at this point.
So, sleepless nights have taken their toll. One night you’re okay, and the next you’re not. The nightmares, the strange feelings of loneliness, and uncertainty are just eating away at your mind in the monotony of boredom and fear.
A wave of domestic violence behind closed doors has risen as well during COVID 19. Who would have thought of it, those abused by family members are not trapped inside with their abusers! Protests, riots, and overall violence seem to be everywhere you look.
IS HELPING AN INNATE TRAIT THAT WILL BRING US TOGETHER?
For the survival of the human race, will tragedy bring people together? Why does it take a disaster to bring us together?
It doesn’t take a tragedy for humans to show generous acts of kindness, but humans come out of the woodwork when a crisis strikes. Humans are lazy, afraid, and many cultures are opposed to butting their nose into the tragedy of others, but when worse comes to shove, and danger arrives into the equation, people react.
So, you see, tragedy does bring people together and repeatedly has over time, but it is not forced. And compassion is a human instinct that follows right alongside the natural human survival instinct to help each other, especially during tragedies and disasters that threaten human life.
What it boils down to, is that as much as we rage war with one another, we are innately ready and willing to save each other. As Dr. Elizabeth Spelke, a developmental psychologist at Harvard says that whether this trait is innate or not is pretty clear, we are born with it.
Unfortunately, the problem is, we fail to focus on the positive events that bring us together. And the negativity bias runs amuck! What Is the Negativity Bias? Our tendency not only to focus more on negative stimuli with ease but also to dwell on these negative events. Also known as positive-negative asymmetry. Again, it’s nature in us. Naturally, we would spend more time on what threatened us than what simply made us happy.
WILL COMPASSION WILL GET US THROUGH THE SECOND WAVE?
Social scientists James Fowler of the University of California, San Diego, and Nicholas Christakis of Harvard have shown how helping is contagious. The acts of giving and kindness will beget more of the same in a chain reaction of goodness. We are doomed to survive this virus, so to speak!
Many of us don’t want to see the coronavirus news anymore. We worry about the people that have no jobs or food, have lost loved ones. Maybe you have lost something too? And the news focuses far from the positive side of daily life.
Think about it, why are we avoiding the news? Or binge-watching for that matter? Why are we saddened by the plight of the world? It’s not just our own pain and suffering; we are hardwired to care about others. And our instinct will weather the second wave.
So, before we throw in the towel stumbling around with the negativity bias, let us remind ourselves of these things:
The human connection will bring us out of this pandemic – It’s the human connection that takes place during a crisis is responsible for the heroic actions we hear about in times of war, natural disasters, and this COVID 19 pandemic. In other words, disaster does bring people together. It’s in our nature not only to survive, but also to want to help others do the same thing.
This disaster has sparked a healing rebellion of its own, one that doesn’t care about racial wars, or the cost and sacrifice it will take to bring our world back – Amid the tremendous suffering and anxiety brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, people are stepping up across the globe with great courage and resilience in helping those who are most vulnerable. And they risk their own lives to do it.
To underestimate the power behind the brave people who are out there fighting for the victims, only feeds the power that is destroying our world even more – Does anyone know what it takes globally to keep people supplied with the basics during a lockdown? We focus so much on the violence, fear, losses that we forget to stop and smell the roses.
Volunteers are out feeding the poor, helping the elderly to protect themselves. Our schools struggled or failed miserably in online classes to graduate the 2020 students, but they did it, and we got through it.
As small as it may sound, I know three friends who have made thousands of masks for charity to fight COVID 19. And I have no doubt there are 10’s of thousands more making masks! Some shop for neighbors, my neighbor shopped for me, I shopped for another, and I bet every person who has stepped up, reached out a hand to another, could create a chain around the world.
I get emails from frustrated people asking why the world is so cruel and violent. And indeed, it is violent and cruel, but how many of us are not a part of that? The problem is, 10,000 people can be in a building for a lecture on peace, and one gunman can enter erasing the 10,000 with his shameful name, “Gunman commits an act of terror……….” The world then focuses on how violent the world is rather than the 10,000 who showed up for peace.
According to Brookings, nearly 7 million essential workers are employed in low-wage health jobs on the COVID-19 front lines, including:
- Health care support workers such as orderlies and phlebotomists
- Direct care workers such as home health and personal care aides
- Health care service workers such as housekeepers and cooks
Median wages across these occupations were a mere $13.48 per hour in 2019—well short of a living wage. More than 80% of them are women, and they are also disproportionately workers of color.
- These people number 7 million. Now add them to numbers across the globe stepping up to protect and help our world regain its normality! Even children are helping to fight the devastation of COVID 19!
AALIYAH GAONA A YOUNG VOICE
A Coronavirus Awareness Song (Lyric Video) Hear the Song Here!
“I wrote this song because first of all, I felt like there are really no other songs that relate to what’s going on in the world right now. People are making a joke of this, and it is nothing to be laughed at. The lyrics to this song that I wrote came from my heart, and I hope this song helps so many others who are dealing with losses and pain from this worldwide sickness. All we can do is pray and most importantly.” 🙏
CHICAGO, IL
Watch this heart-lifting effort, Across Chicago, people have stepped up to care for their communities to weather the COVID-19 crisis.
In Pilsen, HaiSous Restaurant owners, Thai and Danielle Dang, feed 300 people in 20 minutes with the help of dedicated staff! I love this video! Stories of Hope: Chicago communities taking action during COVID-19 I can’t wait until the pandemic passes to dine at HaiSous Restaurant!
Here’s another adorable example that made a huge difference for children: In Jackson Park, Anne Miles and her neighbors created a teddy bear hunt! It’s adorable! Take someone who knows the values of “family” to come up with such a wonderful idea. Kids created maps of Teddy bear locations.
Before schools closed, students at Michele Clark High School in Chicago’s Austin neighborhood launched a podcast that connected and informed peers during remote learning.
Quote from The Stories of Home:
The one thing all these leaders have in common? Hope. Meet more leaders who are supporting their communities during this pandemic at obama.org/hope
CHICAGO (WLS) — Seven organizations from the West and Southside of Chicago have come together to decrease the high number of black and brown deaths due to COVID19. See Tonya Lozano from Healthy Hood Chicago with We Got Us, they have put together a foundation that brings a tear! See the We Got US initiative here.
ISRAEL
Israel’s Defense And Spy Agencies Step Up Anti-Coronavirus Efforts. This just cracks me up… “In the global race for medical supplies and a coronavirus cure, the Israeli government is mobilizing its spies, soldiers, and secretive scientists.” See it here.
LONDON CITY HARVEST
This food outreach center feeds 170,000 people a week! Do I need to say more! Bravo, what an effort! And just imagine the volunteers it takes to pull this off? Huge. The link is below in the Notes Section. It’s amazing!
ITALY
The Italian Red Cross volunteers deliver assistance 24/7 in the most affected country in the world! They are stepping up with endless compassion and dedication to their fellow man. They set up public awareness programs, respond to calls for medicine delivery, aid those most vulnerable, especially those in isolation. They take temperatures at hospitals, and the list goes on! Their motto is, “Be smart. Be safe. Be kind.”
FRANCE
12 remarkable people stepped up and remained quarantined for 47 days and nights to care for the residents of the Vilanova nursing home located on the outskirts of the east-central city of Lyon, France, while the illness killed more than 9,000 people around them.
We focus so much on the negative, while millions are giving up their own safety to help others. The world will survive because more of us care than don’t! Read about here, Freedom! In France, a nursing home takes on COVID and wins
Also, don’t forget the global fundraising in action as we speak. The Center for Disaster Philanthropy reports, as of June 24, total donations received for the COVID 19 pandemic stood at more than $11.7 billion. People everywhere are giving. Below in Notes, there’s an article detailing world leaders pledging $8 Billion for research and the United Nations mission to aid the world’s poorest countries.
So, my dear friends, if you wake up in front of the refrigerator, it’s okay. Help is out there, and things will be okay. (Here’s an article on the New Normal)
This is how we will get through the second wave? We will continue doing what we are already doing, and if it means we must make more changes, work harder, then continue volunteering, staying at home, social distancing, being kind, and giving as much as we can to help those less fortunate.
Do you best and be a part of the solution and step up even in the smallest way, that’s all it will take to bring our world back.
With enormous love,
Efrona
P.S. Don’t forget to light memorial candles for the victims of COVID 19
Notes:
- World Economic Forum, Douglas Broom, Meet the everyday heroes of the pandemic
- The New York Times, Nicholas Wade, We May Be Born With an Urge to Help
- Reuters, Australia book shop gets on its bike to ease coronavirus shutdown
- Reuters, Polish volunteers deliver coffee, walk dogs as coronavirus spreads
- City Harvest London, Delivered 170k meals in one week!
- Brookings, Meet the COVID 19 frontline heroes
- Red Cross, Look For the Helpers: Stepping Up to Stomp Out COVID-19
- New York Times, World Leaders Join to Pledge $8 Billion for Vaccine as U.S. Goes It Alone
- United Nations, Funding the fight against COVID-19 in the world’s poorest countries
- Psychology Today, Emma Seppälä Ph.D., Compassion: Our First Instinct
I used the Israel and the Russian cure to cure my daughter and myself of the coronaviras. I do lime/baking soda twice daily to keep the body clean. We need green foods/veggies and a lot of water. Thank you for sharing your wisdom and your thoughts.
Thank you, John! You are very welcome. That’s interesting with the lime and baking soda. I’d like to learn more. And I do agree about nutrition; we must eat the greens! I personally love them, but I’m skilled at cooking them in fashions that exceed boring flavors. All the best, and stay safe and sane out there, Efrona
On youtube. 24 things baking soda can do. baking soda don’t cure the coronaviras. Just clean-up the metal and waste from the body. Make the body stronger. Central American and Native American herbal cure for many years. Ginger tea, can help too.
Nice, I’ll find it and take a look. We eat a lot of fruits, veggies, and whole grains in Israel with tons of fresh herbs. A diet that accommodates warm weather and great health. Unfortunately, I’m seeing changes in the young people eating too much junk these days even here and in Europe. America is the worst, but they are making changes for the better.. yay.
Hi Efrona and thanks for sharing this post with us!
Absolutely, I love doing it. Thanks for reading, Phillip! Have a super week and stay safe… Efrona
Thank you for this lovely encouraging post! Yes, yes, let’s focus on the positive and keep filling the world with little acts of hope and love! Blessings!!
I see the negativism concept and its quick response being related to the fight-flight-freeze concept. This serves as a protective function for the individual (get away from threat). The impulse to help, while also emotionally based, takes longer to occur and more life experiences to develop. With practice, helping others can become that “fight” (e.g. fighting for others, justice, etc.) response rather than trying to destroy some perceived threat. Thanks for the thought and suggestions in your post. -Oscar
a very comprehensive overview. .. nice to meet you 🙂
Thanks, Calm Kate! And nice to meet you as well. Enjoy your week, Efrona
you too Efrona!
🙏
I was curious when I saw this post and your blog, but given what I wanted to accomplish tonight, I thought “I’ll skim it. There’s no way I am going to digest a post that long.” But once I got into it, the writing was compelling and uplifting. It reinforced what we need to remember not only during the pandemic but with future challenges and crises – we need to support each other and focus on the positives – in this case, awareness and commitment to attack racism, improvement in the environment and benchmarks to judge how elected leaders respond to their duties. Thanks for writing this. Don
Hi, Don, very nice to meet you. Thank you for taking the time to comment in such a way. I’m honored you found the post helpful and a good read. (:
It’s such a difficult time and seeing the world reach out to one another reminds me that humans are indeed born for a better world. I love what George Washinton Carver says, “No individual has any right to come into the world and go out of it without leaving something behind.”
In your blog I see you have daughters that are nurses. That just leaves me silent in gratitude. I hope they are well. And I’m crazy about beer. I’d love to understand it as I do wine. I’m a fan of Belgian brands and Guinness, cheers! Have a super week, Efrona
Thanks so much for your comment, Efrona. -especially about my daughters who both are on the front lines but thankfully still healthy both physically and mentally. And although wine is fine, remember the rhetorical question of one sage: “How many of the world’s great challenges have been resolved over white wine??” Blessings
You’re welcome and I hope they are finding some reprieve! Oh, that’s a great question! I prefer red, but right now I’m having a glass of French Sancerre, it’s white and nice.. But to resolve a world challenge it would have be a combination — a joining of the forces wtih a great stout and wine! (:
Thanks for sharing this . People need to write and post more about the threat we all live in , COVID-19 and it’s effect on people not just health but emotions. So much anger, violence, racial hate crimes instead of coming together. There is a group of people who are stepping in and helping , but there’s the other group that are making it worse. Either way, the virus can potentially infect and harm all. No exemptions. Take care and stay safe.
Good evening, Island Traveler, so nice that you took the time to comment. I totally agree. Weighing the pros and cons of how far to take our own safety has set the world upside down. I personally have been out of my house 5 times in over 4 months outside of walks I take in my village. But it’s easy to be good when you have less to lose, so it’s a conundrum for many people, yet extremely dangerous to disregard what keeps us safe. I’ve been trying to write an article on it, but it’s only in draft. I’ll work on, my friend because you right, we must cover both sides…. with enormous love, Efrona
Thanks Efrona. You should write about what life has been with COVID-19. I know it’s not as popular as posting about travel or lifestyle or anything fun but it is a very real truth that is affecting us all. I kind of accepted the virus but still concerned about it’s long term complications or death. Stay safe my friend . Thanks.
Great post. In our neighborhood, people are leaving flowers, cookies, and thank you notes to our nurses.
In return, we go on walks with them. Cheer them up. Even tell them they can make it 2 more months until retirement. I pray they don’t get sick. These are my friends. I’m worried for them. But I keep smiling, and walking and bring them more flowers and cookies and thank you notes.
Stay safe and keep writing. You have a gift. Hope your loved one is better and your nightmares are gone forever.
Hugs from California
Teri
Hi, Teri, what a lovely comment to read how your neighborhood is supporting the nurses! Thank you for sharing it. And how special to encourage and walk with then. I’m touched to hear it, like a light of hope and beautiful thoughts. And thank you, my nightmares subsided after I wrote this post. Ironic right! And loved ones are on the mend! We are not alone in our worry, but with people like you in the world, we have a chance of a bright future!
Hugs back to you! Stay safe and smiling.
Efrona
My pleasure.
We live in a great community. We usually see someone we know while walking the neighborhood or shopping nearby.
I’m thankful for people like you who take the time to write kind words to perfect strangers.
Wordpress has a good thing going on here.
Happy Sunday. Going on a bike ride now.
Teri
Thanks for sharing your post. It is beautifully written and informative. Your words help enormously during these difficult days.
I agree that the world focuses on the one negative rather than the 10,000 positives. There is so many great acts of kindness going on during these times that no one hears of. I, like you, look for the positive things going on. We will defeat this disease when we look towards faith and stop giving into our fears. Stay safe.
Thank you for reading. And cheers, we will keep focusing on the amazing people and positive happenings. When we defeat this disease we will look back and be proud that we understood the dangers and serious consequences, but we held our positive strength together. Then we will be strong enough to help those who might not be as lucy. Stay safe, my dear friend, with enormous love, Efrona
Thank you for your kind words. Stay safe and positive.
God bless,hope entire world will get rid off COVID Pandemic very soon..
Most excellent information and insight…. true balance to show both harsh and beauty of humanity . Thank you!! Absolutely enjoyed this… intense and calming… 🌹🌹❤️❤️🙏🙏☀️☀️
That was a very uplifting post to end the day. I think we needed that, at least I did.
Thank you, I’m so happy it was helpful. The negativity bias is so powerful, so cheers to the enormous positive actions!
I’m at work in my hospital, and reading your uplifting blog today was just the tonic I needed to get through another difficult day. We all need to be reminded of all the good that is happening in the world, as the media seems to always focus on the bad. Be well!
That is quite a collection of stories around Corona. I suppose it takes us back to the basics in some ways. We are all learning to survive and thrive. I am sure humans are made of sterner stuff.
It looks like you are in the States, and you guys are not doing that great. I hope you personally are safe and well.
I suppose, there are a few reasons for the USA virus spread. Lots of people didn’t believe that virus can cause any troubles, including high numbers of fatal cases, secondly, people are not ready to observe strict distancing and strictly wearing masks until somebody insists and mandates they do..
We got masks, the medical grade, as soon as we found out what this virus can cause and how it spreads. That was in February.
I’ve been in medical research and writing for almost 4 decades and that certainly helps understanding what is real and what is just fake news and rumors, and there was so much misinformation.
Essential workers are certainly risking their life. That calls for everybody to decrease their workload by avoiding crowds, staying at home, not socializing in big groups, wearing masks and being extra vigilant and responsible.
We can be alone and isolate ourselves, and that shouldn’t be seen as some extreme sacrifice, yet, in reality, people cannot stop attending and arranging parties. They cannot skip one swimming season in order to ensure everybody is safe and virus spread is under control.
We have in Canada, too, people protesting against masks, and you watch what will happen when vaccines are available. There will be this nonsense about vaccines and whatnot they cause again.
We were never able before to create a vaccine against coronaviruses. It’s hard to believe this time we will be lucky. My greatest concern is that the time period to test the immunity induced by trial vaccines is just too short. We will be using something for which long-term side-effects are unknown yet.
Good article. I cannot believe somebody behaves like that as you’re describing in the beginning.
People need to just simplify their life and that will give them calm and ability to withstand tests of life.
Hi there, Inese, thanks for your special comment. I apologize for the delay in answering. I easily get behind these days! Sounds like you have some good knowledge being in medical research. You’re so right, a good amount of the population doesn’t see the dangers and it’s a very hard thing to cope with as one who does. Let us hope that things get better fast! I hope you and your family are well and will enjoy the weekend! Take care, Efrona