Be kind, Especially During a Pandemic!

This is my public service announcement about kindness during COVID. Also known as ‘don’t be a dick’.

If someone forgets to sanitize their hands when entering a store or enters without donning their mask – a kind reminder is all it takes. And if they can’t don a mask due to medical reasons – please listen with understanding, not judgment or resentment. Seek first to understand. 

When we react with anger, it’s like we take the behaviour of others and stab ourselves with it. Then we project our hurt onto them and view them as the villain. No one here is the villain. There is no us against them. We are all in this together. Every single one of us.
So please, if you are feeling grumpy, take a moment to care for yourself. If you find you’re feeling angry or impatient when around others, try these super simple tips:

• ​Breath: full and deep. Feel your stomach expand on your inhale, and feel the air on your nostrils as you exhale
• Notice: what do you and the person have in common. (Trust me, there will be something)
• Take care: what do you need? Honour your boundaries and step back to create some distance. But as you create that distance, know that it’s about a virus, and not about distancing from another human being. 
• Honour fear: if you are scared, protect yourself. Wear your mask, and use a mantra: I am safe and I am doing what I can to make a difference.

Every single one of us can make a difference in this world. So be kind. What we’re all going through right now is going to pass. But we need social connection forever. Make yours meaningful. Find the common ground and anchor into it. You’ve got this. 

As I write this, we are 9 months into COVID-19. We’ve been isolated and distanced, and now we’re amping up to distance and isolate some more. The rules are constantly changing – and they are new, and nothing like what they were pre-March 2020. And yes, it sucks. And when things suck, it can make us all a little grumpy. 

​Please remember, no matter where you are, no matter who you are – we are in this together.