Waking The Sleeping Giant
From the beginning of dbeazylife.com, the plan was to post something more frequently than I have been able to of late. For that, I apologize and for that, I promise to do better. The frightening time in which we live has affected nearly every aspect of life. But that is no excuse. From the start, I considered the value of my site would be to serve as a diversion from the routine, from the mundane, and the stress of everyday life. If I am to accomplish this, then words need to be generated and placed onto the digital page.
The act of putting the word to the page is not always easy. This fact is not an unexpected revelation. Though I have been referred to as a writer, which provided me with some momentary validation, I feel that I fall short of meeting the definition thereof.
COVID-19 and my job in healthcare have obviously occupied my mind of late, as well as some other serious personal stuff. By the end of the day, I find myself drained of energy, looking forward to a period where I can enjoy the lack of thinking, my dogs, music, and a cocktail. Three of the four dashes any ability to write. But if you are going to take the time to read my words, then I owe you more, so here ya go. I hope you enjoy.
Yesterday evening, I watched ABC News. It could have been any news service, but I decided to go with ABC. I possessed the predetermined knowledge that this was a mistake. Oddly, saying this now, I can’t explain my need to watch the news. Anyone with a pulse and a third-grade education knows that COVID-19 reporting is round the clock. And anyone with a pulse and a third-grade education knows that the news isn’t good. Not good at all. Hell, I had already heard that the virus had spread from a Bronx Zoo employee to some Tigers and then there was a news story about a Louisiana minister who was arrested for ignoring to shelter-in-place order and even held two additional services after his arrest. Honestly, I don’t know what sickens me most.
So I turned off the news and I started thinking about writing and sat myself down and absolutely NOTHING happened. I said to myself, “This isn’t something you can force.” I left it alone.
Then this afternoon, I had a conversation with a person with whom I have great respect. This person is so intelligent. I hope she never decides to open a “One-Woman-Think-Tank.” She might put me out of business. But I digress.
At any rate, we were discussing this whole mess and I was telling her how I was desperately searching for some good news. She responded by telling me that we prepare for the worst and we hope for the best. Then she shared a story of how her children (a girl and a boy) had been staying at home with their father and how they had built a fort in a closet and were playing together. The daughter, who is a little older, had sort of had a meltdown the night before due to her mother being tied up at work so much lately, and the father had relayed a cute conversation he had overheard between the children as they played in the fort. Her point was that without the pandemic, her family would have been busy in their normal routine of go, go, go, and would have never built the fort together in the first place. Let alone learn to bond together as they have.
We continued our conversation and I left uplifted from the positive remarks, and with a budding idea for this post. As I drove, I found myself anxious to get home before I lost the thread, even though I had to make a couple of stops. The title came to mind and I commenced writing in my head.
The term “Sleeping Giant” is a quote from the movie Tora! Tora! Tora! Near the end of the 1970 film, a Japanese Admiral by the name of Isoroku Yamamoto is quoted as saying, “I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve.” For this story, it matters not if it is fiction or fact, though there isn’t evidence that the man said or wrote this.
The idea that the possible “Silver Lining” to all of this COVID-19 Pandemic news is that in the United States of America at least, a second “Sleeping Giant” may awake. In this analogy, COVID-19 is the catalyst and the “Sleeping Giant” is something a full 180 degrees from EVERY SINGLE ONE of the “round the clock” news pieces which tout nothing but gloom and doom. One of my friends, for example, relayed to me just the other night that she had read that the resulting recession from this pandemic might last for 25 years.
The “Sleeping Giant” from the perspective of the DBeazy One-Man-Think-Tank portrays a positive result. Consider if you will, the impact of this virus on every person, and drill down to the level of day-to-day ramifications. There are no collegiate sports, no professional basketball, no golf, no fishing, no congregating, no sit-down meals in restaurants, and the list goes and goes. Children are home and going stir crazy because of shelter-in-place practices. We can’t go to movies, we can’t go to parks, we can’t go to bars, we can’t touch, we can’t hug, and we can’t even comfort loved ones in a nursing home. The list goes on and on and on and on, and it is negative, to say the least, and simply cannot be sugarcoated. But DBeazy poses this question. What if the “Sleeping Giant” is us? Yes, you and me.
What if we decide that life is BIGGER than handheld devices? What if we decide that being home with family and enjoying three meals per day together is a good thing? What if we realize that the thousands of dollars we spend on travel baseball isn’t worth the cost in terms of the sacrifice to sharing family moments at home? What if parents realize what they do to the folks who are trusted with educating their kids, and decide to help rather than hinder? What if we decide that there is a life absent of a 70 inch Sharp TV? What if we decide that sitting on the front porch has value, even if no words are spoken? What if we discover that Formica serves the same purpose as granite? I mean really, what if we discover that a $15,000 vehicle gets us to the same place that a vehicle costing $80,000, and at the same time? And GOD forbid, what if we discover that we don’t need a prescription for every little thing that comes around?
Yes, in this scenario, the “Sleeping Giant” will soon awake and emerge back into a different world for it will never be the same. While writing this piece, I stopped to consult Facebook and saw the comment of my twin brother and wasn’t surprised to read his thoughts, because I have 56 years of experience like this. His post read:
I don’t mean to step on toes here. All of the things I listed aren’t, in and of themselves, bad. I happen to love my handheld devices, laptops, tablets, and a quite expensive Harley. I am merely suggesting that there is value in a simpler approach to the world as well.
Folks realize that a unique opportunity lies before us. When at last, we get the green light to resume life as “normal,” what will your “normal” be? Do you take the path of the Israelites way back in the Old Testament? Just do good for a while and gradually slide back into the old bitching and complaining that drove you before? Or do you decide that there is a NEW COVENANT, available and that tomorrow is the day that we start to make some real changes for the better?
In this, “Cosmic Reset,” I am reminded of the immortal words of John Lennon when he said,
You may say I’m a dreamer
But I’m not the only one
I hope someday you’ll join us
And the world will be as one
Yes, a lofty goal, maybe, but if you can imagine a world without politics, without Republican or Democrat, without North or South, without Black or White. Imagine a world where there isn’t a need for a separate entrance and exit. Imagine a world where doing what is right for the sake of doing what is right is commonplace.
We can learn about this new world. It’s easy to do. I challenge you today to consider where you are. Consider where you have been, and to consider where you are going and in doing so, allow the “Sleeping Giant” to awaken and take this opportunity to make your world better.