Overwhelmed
The rains paused and the sky seems to want a bit of blue to come out. The temperature is 49 degrees fahrenheit. Today is Monday.
Rushing waters have flooded or overtaken the systems in many communities across the state. Images of cars with only the roof showing above the waterline are being shown on the news. We understand that the storm - called an "atmospheric river" is stronger than most, bringing torrents of water down on cities causing sewers to overflow, old trees to get uprooted, and storm ditches and creeks to be filled beyond capacity. The wet mess is going to take a long time to clean up, and what about the cost to people who already have so much to balance in taking care of basics. This emergency is overwhelming on so many levels.
As if things weren't already a lot to manage, the heavens have decided to join the chorus of warnings we have been receiving about the need to make adjustments, in behaviors as well as attitudes. Some are sincerely trying to do what they can to take small steps that might help: walking, biking, taking public transit to move from point A to point B. Using less plastic, and finding ways to recycle all kinds of things, from clam-shell boxes that can turn into mini greenhouses for seedlings, to re-using plastic bags for shoe covers to walk through water - who needs boots?
Our climate change is another reminder that everything is interconnected. Not just our relations, but everything on the planet. What is it that we don't understand after so many events that tell us our artificial divisions and self-centered views need to be revisited? The pandemic was a clear and global wake-up call to say that existing ways of doing things can be overwhelmed easily, unless people begin working together and sharing information and resources. The failure to do this means disaster for everyone.
The fact that we continue to believe in the idea that if each one takes care of their own little part, everything will be fine - is a problem in today's world. Human beings have got to step up and step out – meaning, we have to see that while taking care of ourselves is one piece of the solution, there is another essential piece that cannot be ignored: that is, that we have to find ways to be comfortable and capable of sharing. We do this by listening to others whose lives are very different from our own. We can find ways to stretch ourselves just a little more so that time, resources, energy is given to be in service of needs beyond our own.
And as we are making these adjustments, we can find the special places of rest and reflection - which can be found even in a few moments of silence and stillness in a day or a week. This last suggestion is how to minimize the feeling of being overwhelmed.