Hope in an Uncertain World

It's an uncertain world ahead of us, so many of us feel that now.  When the world's monetary system screeches to a halt, there's bound to be an eerie silence to life as we've known it. And life as we've known it is about to be changed one way or another.  But exactly how it will change is the uncertain part we wait for.  

I read an article yesterday, and wish I had saved the link, about the abject poverty some parts of the world are experiencing.  When whether or not you eat in any given day is dependent upon how much you earn that day, those people who no longer have money coming in... well those parts of the world are arguably more immediately worried about the pressing concern of starvation while they institute "stay at home" directives than the virus itself.  Some even argued that the cure was worse than the cause. :(  Both scenarios greatly sadden me.  

It's odd the way life interacts with us, both from within and without.  I ponder far out concepts like... this pandemic, could it be like a high fever, fighting off the infection of unfathomable levels of evil in this world?  I really hope some good can come of all this.  

For me, I see the world is in a birth canal, about to be born into something new and fantastic.  Please excuse my apparent enthusiasm.  It in no way jives with what the mainstream masses are feeling.  I get that.  But I know more than I say, and I have more hope than most can fathom putting stake in, even if I did try to explain.  But I won't try, the chasm is too great.  But the way I see it, we, as a humanity, are on our way through this no matter our individual perspectives.  

I hope you are well.  I hope you are healthy.  I hope you are finding ways to embrace positivity and not let this crisis drag you down.  It is my wish for you that you find your way to well-being, however that works best for you.  

For me, I am grateful my family is protected, at least financially, at least for the time being.  Not all have that benefit.  Many have lost their jobs, either temporarily or permanently, either through shutdowns or from electing to stay safe at home.  Financial losses on this scale can be extremely difficult to stay in emotional balance through.  I say this from having experienced being out of work for much of 2011 and falling into a deep-seated anger at society as a whole.  Many may have feelings like that beginning to set in.  I only have words of support to offer, suggestions I suppose.  

First of all, it's quite alright to feel angry, depressed, or whatever is brooding through you.  When you are angry, you are at least not turning it inward on yourself.  When you are in deep depression, you may have given up expecting the world to change around you and settled into a sense of hopelessness.  But there is always some hope to be found.  It may take some time to see where that is for yourself.  

For me, back in 2011, I was feeling like the world was designed to beat people down at every angle.  I felt this kind of oppression in a way that sickened my soul.  There's really no way I can describe the state I was in.  Every which way I looked, I felt obstacles before me, and I was pissed!  Eventually that turned inward and I became super depressed.  I wasn't sure how I could turn things around inside myself. I felt a hopeless desperation to feel better.  I began looking for anything that I could do that would help me feel a little better for a little bit of time.

That's when I had the bright idea to start growing some of my own food.  I thought, at least they can't take THAT away from me!  Knowing that even if I would lose my home that it would take a year or two for the process to kick me out, I decided to start a garden in my back yard.  

Every part of my soul responded to that idea.  So that's what I did.  I sat down with paper, pencil and a ruler and began making plans.  Eight years later I am still gardening, and have plenty of home-canned goods to get us through food shortages.  And given the current pandemic, it felt really good to know that I could feed my family even if stores had closed down.  Many of you may now be thinking a garden is a good idea.  And I'd love to help with that, however I can.  I'm thinking about doing some posts about getting started.  I may not be an expert, but I am willing to try.  And if I can help others in this one small way, that would be satisfying to me.  What do you think, should I do it?