Words of Wellness: January 15, 2021

January 15, 2021 - Culture of Caring - Claudia Finkelstein

As we awaited the end of 2020 and were hoping for brighter days ahead, 2021 had other plans.

At this stage of the pandemic, all metaphors have been exhausted. It is a marathon not a sprint. It is a time of reckoning. It is unprecedented (maybe).

But wait, there’s more. There are multiple synchronous crises. Some, such as systemic racism, income inequality and voter suppression, have been longstanding. It has taken the pandemic, the presence of cell phones, and tireless brave advocates to finally shed light on these, no less deadly crises. The pandemic has made the gross inequities in living situations, the food and housing insecurity and differential access to health care (and differential outcomes) impossible to ignore or to explain away.

The daunting number of Black people killed by police, the daily harassment of Black people whether birdwatching, walking, swimming, or simply waiting for a meeting at Starbucks, is similarly impossible to explain away in the face of cell phone evidence. The election, and more recently, the storming of the Capitol, demonstrate the extremes of polarization we have reached.

And here we are, almost a year into a pandemic without signs of improvement. We have contradictory and inconsistent approaches to infection control and vaccination policies between states. We have exhausted medical personnel and essential frontline workers.

You may be asking, “how are these words of wellness?” To correct anything requires a good look at reality. This holds true within us as well as in society. It’s often uncomfortable to look, but it is imperative.

Each member of our society who is centered, calm and open to new perspectives is a force of good. The ripples are contagious. So even if you are feeling powerless, know that there is great power in any steps you take as an individual to be less reactive and more responsive. To that end, I invite you to join one of our conversation groups for difficult times and drop in on one of our pop-up mindfulness sessions All mindfulness sessions available via this Zoom link. Passcode 289556. 

Please keep these local and state support resources near you:

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Read more Words of Wellness from the Culture of Caring.