The Tears to Come

We are living uncertain times. The way we work, socialize and live has transformed, from day to night, into a questionable movie plot. Our day to day has drastically changed and the things that yesterday were normal, are becoming scary.

The realization of the “new normal” is coming at different speeds in different areas; getting closer and closer to the place you live. This transformation is revealing the differences in societies, support systems and social co-responsibility as nothing else could.

When this is over, there will be many new scars in the world: in people’s memories, in physical bodies, in economies, in relationships, in families, in governments, in support systems...in general.

We do not have control over the consequences, we just have control over two things: what to do today, and what to feel about it.

We can decide how to act on this crisis; how to help people around us, protect ourselves and protect others. We can also decide how to invest the extra time that would be otherwise wasted in something else. It is the time to connect with others, be creative, innovate, stop procrastinating and let yourself explore things that you never had the time for. We can also decide how to show solidarity with others and support the system to support us by not collapsing medical centers, allowing the right distribution of resources, and following the rules laid for everybody’s protection.

We can also decide how to feel about this. No sugarcoating, it is going to be a roller-coaster ride. We all know today somebody who will suffer the loss of a loved one, it may be yourself. We are all hearing stories about people feeling sick and disappearing from our reality without being able to say goodbye. This will continue happening, and many of us will be directly impacted by this. This is also a time to look towards the future and believe that we all will get stronger and reinforced when this situation passes. We will not be the same; we will show our scars for years to come; but we, as a population, will survive. Therefore today, more than ever, we need positive thinking. Do not encourage hate and fear; do not blame countries, races or politicians; don’t allow this situation to bring the worst of ourselves; focus on the things that will make this more endurable to all and share the good things coming out of this.

While this is a tragedy that will cost us dearly; it is also an opportunity to rethink our priorities. Call your loved ones; spend time with yourself; let your spirit be free and please...wash your hands.

Be safe, be smart, be kind; and let’s share tears of joy together once this is over.