This is the first that I’ve written about the pandemic that started early this year. Until now I couldn’t share my thoughts about how it effects us and how to cope, because I didn’t feel able to use the words that are commonly used in headlines; namely, the term for the beastly germ phenomenon, the particular virus that is rampant. (Indeed, I only wrote the words in the title AFTER this article was finished.) When I see the name of the viral germ repeated over and over again, often accompanied by magnified and colour-enhanced images, I get an emotional reaction that blocks right-mindedness and creates anxiety. Not so much for my own well-being and safety, as for how the messages when presented this way will effect everyone, creating more denial than acceptance, more reaction than response, more fear than love.
The Covid-19 crisis needs a new name, one that’s more neutral and less triggering. We put a lot of effort into staying positive and hold the right attitude to keep moving forward and do what needs to be done. Words have power, so when we find the right words, we enhance our own strength and send the right energy to others. My self-talk – and how I’d talk to little kids goes like this: “There is an invisible germ around these days that can make us all very sick, so we must wash our hands a lot, stay close to home and touch only our own stuff. This is how we and everyone we love can stay well and how we will defeat this germ.”
The term “Pan 2020” is the best alternative phrase I can think of for what we are experiencing right now. Has there ever been anything so widespread and all inclusive across our dear planet, so “pan”? Let’s just say that it let’s me talk and write about it without slipping into fear mode and losing my good energy.
I hope this new name, or something else with neutral energy, catches on as a change from the energy draining words that can drag us all into a sense of mire and chaos. The wisdom traditions of the world (e.g. Romans 12:2) have clearly taught that our minds create reality and that our thoughts are transformational. There is no denying these are trying times, so let’s stay aware and awake and on the good path together.
S. Lynne Marshall 