The Great Global Blessing of 2020

Pondering the great depression, as named for the time during 1929-1933 when we had a food shortage caused by the dust bowl and a stock market crash, or the Spanish Flu 1918-1920 or the more recent genocide of Rwanda, April 17- July 15, 1994, and the Iraqi war still underway, peaking death tolls in the mid 1990's, I am grateful for this global pandemic.

Time gone by, places far away and not understanding war and genocides, I am grateful that in 2020 our global communities and our local communities are in this together. We are not away from the suffering but part of the suffering. In this experience, for many of us, it is our first time being so close and part of something so grave. We are living with precaution, concern and the need to talk with children and friends sharing in our uncertainty.  For the first time we read and hear about and know people personally who are directly impacted either in service and care or in the death of a loved one.

In this experience, for me, I have becoming more aware of the depth of suffering that many other local and global communities experience daily even now well beyond this pandemic. Those who are impacted from gang violence, civil wars, poverty, and domestic violence.  These are horrible situations that go on every day in our lifetime.  These are humanities sufferings that  that most of us, will for me, I try to avoid contemplating for it hurts too much.   So often I sheltered myself from the world's suffering, poverty, loss and worry. I shelter in place from all that goes on even in 2020.

Not this year.  This year, 2020,  I open my eyes, and ears and hear the cries of the poor and listen to those impacted by loss of jobs and friends.

This year of 2020 we become AWARE as a people together.  We recognize the need for each other and connect more deeply in the real uncertainty of our time.  I personally am grateful that we have a renewed compassion for the lonely, dying alone, the poor, those most in need of food and assistance, the sick,  in need of medical care and ventilators, those on the fronts lines in our grocery store, restaurants, delivery services, healthcare and our government officials operating in crisis.

I truly believe that in the end of this crisis, we will have learned a new way to be: coming to gather as a global community to find a cure, working together at a more measured pace to see what needs to be done for all,  serving one another with kindness and compassion, smiling at each with more presence, appreciating those who work in jobs that provides us the services we need and most of all connecting with our families and loved ones. Praying that our global communities and governments come together to create a new world in 2020 to be known as the year of The Great Global Blessing.