Perspective

So, a few days ago, Governor Mike DeWine issued a “Stay at Home” order to most people in the state of Ohio.  When announcing it, he and Dr. Acton talked about the sacrifice involved.  Although this situation is not ideal and it is a little bit inconvenient, I don’t know that I consider anything that I am doing a real sacrifice when I think about the situation that other people have gone through and are still going through.

I don’t share my perspective in judgement of anyone else.  Everyone’s situation is different and the way we deal with these situations is different.  I share my thoughts with you because they actually promoted a feeling of gratitude and appreciation in me and made me feel like what I am going through at the moment is very manageable.

The Stay at Home order issued still allows me to shop for groceries, go to the drug store or pick up some food at local restaurants.  I can walk around the block.  I spend time in my yard, weeding the garden or walking the dog.  I can wave to my neighbors or shout a greeting over the fence.  I can get in the car and take a ride.  I am not a captive in my home to be sure.

I know that there are places in this world where families feel homebound because of the violence they see around them.  Girls are not able walk to school because they fear kidnapping and human traffickers.  In this country, children are not able to go into their yards for fear of gangs or stray bullets.  They are used to being confined in small places for their safety.

And then there are those people who dream of being confined to a home.  The immigrants forced from their homes because of war.  Those that have fled their homes because of violence.  The homeless that live on our streets every day of the year. 

For some people being homebound is very difficult and even dangerous.  Those with mental illness or who are developmentally disabled that are losing their usual support system and their caretakers are suffering. The homebound elderly that depend on visits from friends and relatives for their mental and physical well being suffer being isolated.  Hopefully there are other ways to reach out to this population.  This is also a dangerous time for those in abusive situations.  I pray that they find a way to stay safe.

And then this morning I saw this on Facebook:

“To put things in perspective for those of us feeling a bit stir crazy already – Anne Frank and 7 other people hid in a 450 sq. ft. attic for 761 days, quietly trying to remain undiscovered to stay alive.  We can all do our part to keep everyone safe and spend a few weeks at home.”

I know when I was in school, everyone read The Diary of Anne Frank.  I don’t know if that’s still the case.  If you have a teenager or a young person in your life that hasn’t read it, you might want to recommend it.  After seeing that quote, all I could think was yes, this situation is a little inconvenient but hardly a sacrifice for me.

I pray that everyone stays safe and healthy and that when this is all over and life returns to normal, our new normal life is a filled with a little more kindness and appreciation for everyone we meet.