Do you Really Care? And If You Don't, Can I Really Blame You?

Photo by G-R Mottez on Unsplash

It’s been quite a while. More than that actually. I set these goals for myself to write and post at least twice a week, start writing that book I’ve been thinking about writing, really get this whole personal finance gig thing rocking like I’ve been talking about for years. Yeah, that’s not what my life has been over the last few months. And now that I have oodles of time due to what’s going on in the world right now, (more on that in a minute), you’d think I’d have the time to reach those goals. I should have a first draft written by now, and I should have a few dozen blog drafts, just waiting to be published. But I don’t. And instead of doing something about it over the last few months, I’ve been paralyzed. Stuck. Inside myself. In my head way too much. And that has left me in the state I’m in now. Stuck between wanting to, and doing. So what changed today you ask? I got tired of wanting to do something and decided to do it. The only problem is now, that with everything going on in our world today, it seems a bit insensitive to talk about anything but.

COVID-19. The Rona. Corona Virus. Pandemonia. The Global Pandemic. All of these things amount to basically one thing: a few months ago, COVID-19 spread, rapidly, and has changed the way we as a people live our lives today, and realistically, for I’m sure the far off future. It feels like the world has stopped. You turn on the news, (whichever station that’s your flavor), and it’s all that’s talked about. Each and every day, new statistics, new studies, new opinions, more and more people being impacted, and infected. People losing work. People not having enough to eat. People worried about how they are going to take care of their basic needs. The economy is tanking. The stock market has bottomed out more times than I can count. People are scared. People are angry. People are feeling EVERYTHING. And it seems like there is nothing that none of us can do about it. We are left to trust our elected officials, local, state, and federal government, to make the best decisions for us. Now, more than ever, our decisions, past and present are affecting our EVERYTHING. Not only is this “thing” affecting our physical health, but it’s putting its strain on our mental as well. Quarantined to our homes, forbidden from public gathering, unable to do the basic things, fearful of entering even a grocery store, shaken and frightened when someone so much as coughs near you. People are struggling. All this is on my mind, as I try to ease myself back into a writing groove. I ask myself who is going to care? People want answers, solutions, hope. Do they really want to hear my thoughts on the financial industry, the latest trends, my three-year old’s annoyingly use of the words “no thank you” ( he legit says it for everything, “Aiden, you want a kiss?” No thank you, it’s infuriating), or how my daughter’s piano lessons are going. Or any of my otherworldly musings? 

The answer is. I don’t know. I haven’t taken a poll of any kind (and don’t plan to). And even if I were it wouldn’t be representative of everyone anyway. I haven’t talked to many people about it. I can only say how I feel. Or share my opinion. I know that in a world, where there is so much anguish right now, so much pain, suffering, so many unanswered questions, a distraction is WELCOME. If reading about my son’s assholeness, (he’s so darn cute tho), can give you a little chuckle, and distract you for 5 minutes from what’s going on around you. I’d welcome it. Information is great. Having access to anything we want to know so easily, is one of the greatest things of our time. Being able to find out what’s going on in Wuhan, China while sitting in my pink chair with my feet propped up on my pouf ottoman, in Virginia, is amazing. Social media, while I have separate thoughts on that, can also be informative, and can give us a peek into our friends and loved ones lives, especially now when we are confined to our own spaces. Technology is great, it’s one of my loves. 

However, sometimes there can be too much. Now, when we don’t have much else to distract us. When we are literally confined to our own space, with not much of an outlet, besides the ones we have created in our own space, it may be too much. When this all started, I would wake up, grab my phone and go straight to the Apple News App. Check the statistics, read briefings, read the stories of how COVID-19 has impacted real people, and grab my laptop. About a few hours later, a new notification pops up, and I stop what I’m doing and look at that too. That cycle happens throughout the day until the workday has ended. Then I turn on CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News (Ugh), trying to get different perspectives on what’s going on in our world. Not to mention while I am working, I’m listening to news podcasts, which are all covering the virus. In between my information collecting, I’m surfing social media, for updates, on people’s lives, and how they are dealing with the virus. Then I go to bed and do it all over again. 

It was when my headaches would not go away, no matter what I did, is when I decided something needed to change. I’m not saying don’t be informed. I’m not saying block everything and everyone out. What I am saying is, don’t make it your life. This is the time to take time for yourselves. Take time away. Try and block some of the “noise” out. It’s ok to check-in, but that’s what we should be doing at this time. ‘Checking In.” If we inundate ourselves with all this information and negativity, it will cause our physical and mental health to deteriorate. The later, more than the former I would assume. 

So back to my original question or thought? Should you care? Is it insensitive to talk about anything other than COVID-19 and how it’s impacting our lives? The long answer to that question you didn’t ask? No. We need to be empathetic, we need to be informed, we need answers. But we also need peace. Calm. and a sound mind. Taking some time to think about something other than the virus, doesn’t mean we don’t care. It just means, it's not the only thing we care about.