Yesterday I read something profound on Facebook. “Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react.” — Charles R. Swindoll
I’ve heard it before but this time it really hit home. The world we live in has changed dramatically since Covid-19 struck. I know that you don’t need me to tell you that. The changes are evident wherever you go.
What I want to review today is Mr. Swindoll’s statement. “LIFE IS 10% WHAT HAPPENS TO YOU.” Right now, the 10% he refers to is Covid-19 and it is happening to all of us. What’s truly important is the “90% HOW YOU REACT.” Here, we all differ.
Jeremy, Allyson and RJ are visiting and helping make my new abode a home. Last night we ordered take out from a local restaurant. The place was mobbed, and we had to wait about an hour past the time they told us the food would be ready during which time 30 or so individuals picked up their dinners.
Of the 30 people I witnessed coming, some wore mask, and some didn’t. Some kept proper social distances, and some didn’t. Some pushed passed the crowd and went into the restaurant, and some didn’t. As per the usual, the people I saw acted as individuals as expected. The problem is that acting as individuals is no longer a good thing when it comes to Covid-19.
We desperately need to isolate and destroy Covid-19. At the same time, we need to open our community and businesses and establish a new norm. To be successful, we need to be adult enough to follow the rules.
We need to mask when in public. We need a reliable source of certified appropriate mask made in the USA. We need to learn how to properly use and maintain our mask. We also need to learn how to communicate while wearing a mask as facial cues, integral to good communication skills, are lost due to the mask.
We need to establish our personal space; a 6-foot circle of protection. People need to recognize and preserve their space and the personal space that belongs to others. Life has to slow down a little. Pushing past others to get to the front of the line has to stop. I’ve always said that something good has to come from something bad in order to lessen the bad. Slowing down and respecting other’s space will be the “something good.”
The 90% how we react is going to decide how fast we clear the Covid-19 attack and how safe our families and friends will be. We cannot lapse back into our old ways and assume that Covid-19 will respect our personal space.
Bear with me for just a few minutes more. Yesterday, I had made an appointment for a massage. My miserable back calms down after a massage and I haven’t had one since February. I cancelled that appointment! I realized I was about to spend 60 minutes in close contact, in a closed room, with someone I didn’t know.
It dawned on me that my masseuse was an individual who might have gone out into the world without a mask. She might not maintain her personal space. She might have asymptomatic Covid-19.
My doctor side kicked in! In the early days of my practice I treated more venereal disease than in the latter days of my practice. Why the discrepancy? Over the years, we learned how to protect ourselves from sexually transmitted disease. Those who practiced safe sex did well. Those who didn’t suffered the consequences.
Practice safe sex (hopefully often). Practice safe Covid-19 rules all the time!
Here’s your song and joke.
“When I was a kid my dad sat me down and showed me pictures of why I should always wear a condom,” a man told his buddy.
“Your dad showed you pictures of venereal diseases?” the friend asked.
“No,” the first said, “they were all pictures of me.”
