LESSONS IN HUMANITY AND PRIORITIES – BROUGHT TO YOU BY CORONAVIRUS

You can’t turn on your television, look at your smart phone, or power up your computer without being bombarded with information about coronavirus.   As overwhelming as it is, it’s understandable.   Globally, we’re experiencing something deeply unsettling.  This event is shaking up reality as we know it and, as humans, our brains are wired to try to make sense of the world around us.   So, in an attempt to understand it, we talk about it and consume and share information about it relentlessly.

Yet, in the midst of sharing the latest COVID stats, something else is happening.  We are being forced to reconsider “normal” life and gaining some much-needed perspective.   On the deepest levels, this situation is reminding us of our fragile humanity and just how important, necessary, and special it is.

If you’ve got a roof over your head, food on your table, and family by your side – or a phone/video call away – we’re coming to realize that is really all we need.   Beyond meeting our basic human needs it is human connection that actually matters.  It turns out buying the latest iPhone, this season’s designer purse, or a bigger house or a newer car, doesn’t even come close to the top of list of what is truly important.

At Heightened Hearts, we feel like in our material, capitalistic world we have become so hyper-focused on money and what that money can buy that we lost track of the genuinely essential things.  Like the joy that comes from selflessly helping another person.   Or the feeling of fulfillment from being surrounded – whether in person or digitally – by your family and closest loved ones.  In short, the thing that makes us human is our connection to other humans.

Look at social distancing as an example.   Most of us will recover if we get coronavirus.   Yet we are willingly adhering to social distancing protocols to protect the most vulnerable among us.  We are sacrificing some of our freedom and autonomy to save lives of people we will likely never know or meet.  It may just be the greatest act of global solidarity we have ever seen and that is a beautiful thing.

We have an opportunity here to teach our children a different life lesson than the one perhaps they were learning.   The path to happiness and having a full life isn’t just driven by achievement and making money.  It also relies on making human connection, being a part of a community, and helping one another.  We’re learning how much stronger our communities are when we all pull together. We’re being reminded that our communities can only prosper with our active involvement.

Now, thanks to technology, we’re able to be part of communities that connect people across the globe.  However, it is still important to care for and help the people in close physical proximity.  This includes supporting local businesses, something that is more important now than ever.   Those small businesses are a result of the blood, sweat, and tears of other people in your area that have invested in and improve your local community.  The stronger the small, local businesses in a given area, the stronger the overall economy, which strengthens your hometown area in other ways.

Regardless your personal situation as a result of coronavirus, be gracious.   Let the lessons of this trying time change your outlook towards your local community and fellow humans.   Allow the lessons of the importance of family bonding and being kind to others be the ones your children take away from this trying time.  If we can carry on these lessons well after things find a new normal, humankind as a whole will be better for it.

There are so many individuals and families who are in need as a result of this virus and the current economy.  If you are among the fortunate who are in a position to give, please consider a donation to Heightened Hearts.   Due to the current situation, we have a record number of requests for our services.  Further, we have our Back2School program in July, where we provide much needed school supplies to impoverished children so they can start the school year off prepared and with pride.  A donation in any amount helps.

Please consider making a donation today!   Thank you in advance!