(But not how you would think).

I think I speak for all of us when I say that 2020 has started (and continued) on the wrong foot. As we find ourselves unexpectedly stuck at home, quarantined from the dangers of the corona virus, it is safe to say that deep within all of our minds is an echoing, unanimous “wtf??” 

COVID-19 is slowly but surely unhinging every system in society as we know it. The economy is collapsing, healthcare is inefficient, and we have run out of toilet paper. It’s like every apocalyptic, end-of-the-world, psychological thriller I have ever binge-watched is happening right now on my screen as we speak. And I don’t even have the option of changing the movie.

Shit is serious. Idk about you, but it has been very difficult for me to wrap my mind around the whole thing. Difficult to grasp the current state of affairs…especially in the confines of my danger free home. 

The ridiculousness of my circumstance finally hit me last Sunday. 

Last week, the Roman Catholic Church postponed all Sunday masses until further notice…. that’s how you know it’s real. Sunday mass never closes! Even when you kind of sort of secretly wish it would sometimes 

As the devoted family we are, mom made us watch a service online. There I was on Sunday morning, standing in my marble tiled living room (watching some random mass service from South Dakota) on my smart TV….my SMART tv!! Do you know how ridiculous it is that I have a smart tv—where I can view virtually every platform known to mankind—AS IF THATS NORMAL!?!? Because let me tell you that may be my everyday life, but that is not the reality for the vast majority of Americans, let alone people of the world.

While people are worried about how to protect themselves, where their next paycheck will come from, how to cover medical expenses, my main concern is not missing mass…..

This is not to underestimate the importance of faith during times like these (and of course everyone’s struggles are valid). However we must be real and admit that the levels of preoccupation between the two are not the same. At the end of the day, it all boils down to my immense privilege. 

Looking back at life before quarantine, it is funny the things I would kill myself over. Everything I used to care about feels so insignificant now. Before I was in a constant state of inner turmoil. Questioning “am I doing enough?” or “what will people think?….” Honestly? WHO CARES. 

It took a global pandemic for me to realize something very important:

Nothing matters and everything is ridiculous. 

This is the greatest relief. And I will tell you why. 

When you live a privileged life, it is easy to make monsters out of anything. Easy to put a ticking clock where there is no deadline. Easy to make problems where there are none. In all actuality, if you are not in a hospital bed or struggling to provide a home for your children, you are in a position to do anything you want. It is about perspective.

When nothing matters, the monsters take no relevance. And because everything is ridiculous the reason “we can’t” suddenly becomes “why not?”

To those with a privilege like mine, I know it is easy to feel guilty about it. On the contrary, I urge you to reflect on the power we have to help those who are really struggling…because to live in a state where you are not worried about survival is to have everything you need. At the very least, we can start by not making less of the opportunities we do have. This is much easier when we remind ourselves that as long as you are healthy and stable, nothing else really matters and everything is ridiculous. We have the power and the privilege of changing our perspective.

So if you are reading this, take this blog post as a sign to do that thing you’ve been thinking about or don’t (it doesn’t matter!).

Let us stop turning everything into do or die because—as corona has kindly pointed out—some things actually are. And now more than ever, let us have honest conversations and talk about these things. 

My heart goes out to the thousands of humans this virus has deeply affected and to those the system has failed. I have a feeling this pandemic may be the thing our world desperately needed in order to change its priorities and its perspective. Let’s make sure it is not in vain.

There is a famous quote (of which I am not sure its origin) that says,

 “If not I, then who? If not now, then when?”

So I invite you to change your perspective along with me. Refocus on our priorities. Let us take our privilege and stay home…preferably now rather than later:)

All my love,

Venecia