This morning I canceled a business trip. It is not the first event I’ve had to rethink. Almost all group events are being postponed with no new dates yet being offered. Classes are being cancelled and students everywhere are tuning in on-line instead. Graduation ceremonies will be done virtually. Weddings are being postponed.  Businesses are asking employees to work from home. Grocery stores have unusually empty shelves. Whole cities and states are being locked down. Surreally, we find ourselves in the midst of a global pandemic.

In times like these, our first response is to ask, “Is this real? Should I be concerned? What is really happening?”  Once we determine the reality of the situation, our next question might be, “In this moment, am I, and are my family members, safe?” If the answer to that is truly yes, we might breathe a sigh of relief and slip into a state of momentary gratitude. For me, my next urge is to slow things down, and attempt to function as normally as possible to maintain my daily routine.

Once I find my footing within the new context, my metaphysical nature kicks in and I can’t help but wonder, “What the heck is this really about? Spiritually speaking, why is this happening? What good is this going to produce? What new state of awareness as a culture will we evolve to that will advance us to the next level? Was this situation necessary for our higher evolution to occur?”

As I ponder these questions I find it helpful to look at them from the perspective of the personal stories of those intimately involved in any tragic event. The best insights often come from the very personal, intricate ways that only individual stories can provide, based on how they were personally impacted, and the attitudes they chose to have about that impact.

For example, I have a friend, Joe, who after having a devastating stoke, called it a stroke of luck because of all the good that came out of it for him. He confessed that his life was headed in the wrong direction and the stroke turned it all around, grounded him and then forced him to face what he needed to face. Looking back, he understood why things unfolded the way they did, and felt that the stroke actually saved his life.

One thing this pandemic is showing us yet again is that we are all deeply connected. Germs have an undeniable way of showing us this connection. It is also showing us the cause and effect relationship of our thoughts and behaviors. If we wash our hands and keep our immune systems strong with healthy habits, we have a better chance of staying well. If we are sick, we can help keep others well by staying home, keeping everything we touch clean, and covering our mouths when we sneeze and cough. How we think and what we do affects whether or not we get the virus, and how it spreads.

For years we have been asking for global change. And now, we are in the midst of something huge happening.

As spiritual beings, we know it is the nature of life to always evolve to the next, highest level. We trust that everything is always working in our favor to bring forth the highest good for all involved. In times like these, it is our job to look for the good, to be adaptable, to be willing to learn, and to embrace the changes that need to be made. We appreciate that certain challenges help us to develop important, new skills that we otherwise may not have developed. We remember that when we are in the messiest, most uncertain and scariest times, it means that something new is trying to emerge. And, we need to allow it.

The following piece was written by Kitty O’Meara. I love the vibrational energy of her words, and hope it might bring some hope and ease to your mind and heart as it did for mine.

 

And the people stayed home.

And read books, and listened, and

rested, and exercised, and made art,

and played games, and learned new

ways of being, and were still. And

listened more deeply. Some 

meditated, some prayed, some 

danced. Some met their shadows.

And the people began

to think differently.

 

And the people healed.

And, in the absence of people living

in ignorant, dangerous, mindless,

and heartless ways,

the earth began to heal.

 

And when the danger passed,

and the people joined together again,

they grieved their losses, and made

new choices, and dreamed new

images, and created new ways to live

and heal the earth fully,

as they had been healed.