Here are some possible prompts:
- What has been the most personally challenging? (not blame but emotions, frustration etc.)
- Who or what is helping you cope, if anything?
- What really matters to you (when push comes to shove)?
- How are you staying connected? Does it help your emotional state?
- What you are learning about yourself emotionally and relationally, both around your family and friends and society?
- What positives can come from this already?
- What positives would you like to come from this?
Feel free to share whatever is on your heart/mind around this personally.
Most personally challenging: I'm a Canadian who was visiting India for 4 months when the crisis exploded. Flights back got cancelled, now India is in total lock-down and does not allow any international flights. There are food shortages, imposed stay-at-home isolation for all, and some animosity towards foreigners. My wife and I are stuck here, as are many others. I am indeed scared. But I'm more scared of the human reaction than the virus itself. I stopped reading the Cliff doomsday thread (no offense Cliff, but in my situation, it gave me the creeps and wasn't helping in any way, it just grew my anxiety).
What or who helps: my wife being here with me, of course. We are in government imposed isolation, so to be isolated with my beloved is a gift from the divine. It also helps me when I think that we'll all come in contact with the virus eventually, and that the odds are I will be able to fight it.
What really matters to me: hmm, that's a deep internal search question, isn't it? I know I don't know all the answers to that one. I know I love life, and I deeply love those who are dear to me, my wife, my children and grandchildren, my siblings, my parents, my friends. I also know that humanity, with all the good it has achieved in art, science, etc, (and in spite of all the bad that came with it), is a spectacular achievement that I hope will carry on and evolve into much better things. I know and hope that this crisis will be a serious wake up call for us all to re-examine our values and foundations, and that this might just be the kick-in-the-butt we collectively needed to evolve.
How am I staying connected: I'm in steady (but remote and difficult) contact with my siblings and friends by text messaging, with my mom by skype, with my son also though this one is more challenging with the time zones. Does it help my emotional state: enormously. I cannot overstate this. I can feel very disconnected without this (admittedly sporadic) contact with those I love. Sometimes it gives me the creep when those exchanges lead to dark and scary possibilities or doomsday talk (those I have to find a way to stop).
What am I learning about myself, emotionally: I am much more fragile than I thought. I am not invincible and will not live forever. I am easily scared by social unrest, and as such, I am deeply dependent on the orderly society I have come to take for granted. Relationally: I need connection. In fact, connection is the only reason for my existence. Isolation is making this very clear to me.
What positives can come of this: already, people have demonstrated a lot of courage, creativity, adaptability and compassion (in spite of the craziness that also poked its nose in). Health care workers have shown incredible courage and dedication, and people are starting to recognize it. All other essential workers too. We all still have power, water, internet, phone service, banking... This is wonderful and the people who make it possible are heroes in this battle.
What positives would I like to come from this: If and when we come out of this, we will be a better human race. I also hope that we will be a more enlightened human race, that we will wake up to the need to rethink our values, and hopefully shift away from the industrial hyper production and hyper money-driven attitude to a more evolved one based on human beings, sharing, compassion, collaboration and love.
I'm not sure anyone here will read all of this, and it wasn't really written to be read... I just had to get these thoughts written down. Thanks to yyz67 for the very good thread (I hope it doesn't get hijacked by the doomsday crowd) and for giving me that little push into introspection.
Peace and love to all