Convenience over concern, and bliss over reality.

Everywhere you go these days is, I hope, for necessities. I have had to go out to the grocery store numerous times. I don't want to, but of course with all of the overbuying, it is impossible to find the things you need in one trip. Stores have shopping hours for seniors which makes being a little strategic about what times to go very difficult. In trying to plan for times when I think there will be less people there, I end up going when things have run out. One morning I went to a supermarket that I thought opened at 6am. I was told that the senior shopping hour was from 5-6 am, but when I arrived at 6 it turned out that the early hour was 6-7. The parking lot was full when I got there and although they would not allow anyone under 60 to enter until 7, there was already a line of about 10 people. I did make it in the store, but by then most of the popular items were already gone. All over town the same scenario is playing out, yet what I see when I am there is that people really are living on the edge. In trying to respect the social distancing that we are all recommended to abide by, I found myself dodging others by quickly moving away when someone got close to me in an isle. Not many people there were really paying attention, or even cared it seemed. I avoided isles that I needed to go down because others were there. It didn't seem like too many people cared, or would even notice the proximity to others. Most of them I think would just rather not go out of their way to try an avoid close contact. I even had someone sidle up to me outside to ask why I was in line. So what I see is people are more concerned about their convenience than the threat that is out there.

I honestly feel that there are a lot of people on this planet that live life like things only happen on television and in the news. Folks are acting sometimes like things can only happen in other areas, or to other people and not to them. I believe it creates a sense of make believe that some have difficulty separating from reality. All too common is the person who feels that they would never go through what they see or read about. How often does the story that comes out after the tragic event have people saying they never could imagine this happening? All too often in my opinion. Of course there is the fact that we mostly try to give others the benefit of the doubt. We are raised to trust in others, to believe in them. Sometimes that may create a sense of denial when we hear a rumor about someone we think we know. Put that together with a world that is seen mostly through the eyes of media outlets, and it is not hard to feel like we are not a part of the world we read or hear about.

We must belong to the other world, the one where everything goes our way, and nothing bad ever happens. It is a false sense of reality yes, but it is also a situation where we are convinced that there are two worlds out there. Even stranger than that is the fact that we know the truth, that two worlds really don't exist. Maybe virtual reality is the reason. I guess that until we are in the moment, we just choose to see life through rose colored glasses. I am not sure that is a bad thing all the time, but it has to skew things a bit when something really compromising happens. We truly can't think bad things only happen to other people. Being prepared seems to be the best way to handle an unfortunate situation. Rarely though do you find that someone is prepared enough when something does happen. For example, you may know that you have prepared for a quarantine by stocking up supplies, but when the time comes, you still panic wondering if you have prepared enough. Some say you can never be too prepared, and that seems to be true in almost any situation. We can though be more conscious. Consciousness will help us to live more in the "now," and to see things more at face value.

As we wrap up another week of house arrest and unrest, and as we look forward to another week of the same, I make a plea for more consciousness. We all can make things better a lot quicker by not feeling that "it can't happen to me." Of course, have faith in your health that you can fend off what is going around, but be realistic too. We have too many habits that are subconscious to think that we don't put ourselves at risk in public. Touching one's face is something that has an average of 26 times an hour. That is a hard habit to break, or be aware of constantly. This is just one example of many things we do "automatically" even sometimes before we realize we are doing it. Today, we have been taken out of our routines and our norms. Perhaps an opportunity to see just how much your life is redundant, and could use a little diversity. It seems like this pandemic has created many opportunities that would not present themselves otherwise. Family time, togetherness, care and concern for one another, time for worship, time for rest, so many things that we don't always have at our disposal. Those are just a few reasons to try and see life more through a window than a movie, or a book.

Another week has passed. No foreseeable end in site for what has been taking our lives to unknown places. Keep the energy positive, and please try and respect others. We can be more realistic by understanding that this virus going around is not discriminatory and can become a part of your real world. Consciousness will prevail over ignorance or denial every time. As we gain more consciousness, we also gain a better awareness of ourselves. Enjoy family time this weekend, but keep your distance from everyone else. Please leave some things for others in need at the stores. God will show us the way to a better place and to better consciousness.