This Crown Will Not Rule Us
Hopefully by now, we’ve got our hand washing ritual down, our cars are stocked with masks, gloves, and anti-bacterial wipes for grocery shopping, and we can gauge 6 feet away just as easily as we can a 4-inch stiletto heel. We have adapted our lives to the challenge of COVID-19.
And while we do not yet have the gift of hindsight to show us what we got right or wrong, there is one thing I can point to that will always be the best reaction to a crisis. Time and again, history has proven that when humanity collides with tragedy, our better angels win. Even a crown-shaped virus that indiscriminately infects and sometimes kills its host is no match against the weapons of mass construction: kindness, generosity and sacrifice.
I have been, and still am, scared at times. But lately, my fear has turned into hope. I’ve decided that watching newscasts, which by their nature are designed to heighten emotions for viewership dollars, only increases my anxiety. Instead, I will watch and look for the silver in our current dark cloud. There is only one path that makes any spiritual sense on how best to travel the road before us: that path is love. I’ve curated some of my favorite stories that just might inspire you to give back in your own special way.
As most of you know, I’m an avid animal lover. I was thrilled, then, to discover that the Dallas SPCA and Operation Kindness have been able to place ALL of their animals in foster homes except for those that need medical care. The rest of the country also has places where, for the time being, all the pets are being fostered in someone’s home. Not only is this fantastic companionship for the humans who are fostering, it also helps prepare the animal socially to become part of a family and increases their chance of finding a forever home.
We shouldn’t overlook the fact that people are battling other medical conditions during this crisis. In California, a 15-year-old who just finished her final chemotherapy treatment for cancer, turned the corner into her neighborhood to find her entire block had come out to celebrate with her. They lined her street with cars, displaying posters, balloons and streamers while keeping a safe social distance from the people around them.
A proud Missouri woman bragged on Facebook about her generous daughter-in-law, who had bought bushels of Gerbera daisies to make over 150 small bouquets. She took them to the aged care facility to be given to all the residents and staff to brighten their day.
As we all know, senior citizens are especially hard hit by this disease and deserve kindness. A 96-year-old man was having trouble navigating a grocery store and had a single, dented can of baked beans in his cart. A fellow shopper noticed and asked if he needed help. Turns out he was trying to find more baked beans (that was the last can in the store) and canned spaghetti to make dinner for he and his wheelchair-bound wife. The other shopper got his address and with a friend they went to many stores to find the beans and also bought more food, plus TP, then surprised the man at his home. He tried to pay them back but these two shopping angels insisted that they were sure he had done some good deeds for others in his life and that this was on them.
And, of course, my personal favorite: Actor John Krasinski’s YouTube show, “Some Good News,” reunited the original Broadway cast of Hamilton to perform for a young girl whose plans to see the show were scuttled by the pandemic. (The good stuff starts about 10 minutes in, if you want to skip right to it.)
There are countless other stories like these — happening all over the world — every day. If you have any stories that brightened your day, please share them in the comments. This crisis has held a mirror up to our character and I love seeing what it reflects.
We are kind. We are unselfish. We are resilient.
This crown will not rule us.
#OnlyJoy