The vaccine mindset
How many times have you heard (or said) these phrases?
“I can’t wait for things to ‘go back to normal.’”
“We’ve just gotta get that vaccine.”
“Surely the kids will be back in school by the fall.”
Well, here we are in July…still waiting for all of the above to happen (not to mention all the other issues facing our country). It feels daunting. And it’s causing many of us to grow weary.
I recently watched a video recounting all the world events which occurred during the lifespan of someone born in 1900…
· 14th birthday – WWI starts
· 18th birthday – 22 million people have died in the war
· 20th birthday – 50 million people have died because of the Spanish flu
· 29th birthday – The stock market crashes and unemployment reaches 30 %
· 41st birthday – America enters WWII
· 45th birthday – 75 million people have died in WWII
· 50th birthday – The Korean War starts; 5 million people die in the next 3 years
· 55th birthday – Polio has claimed 500,000 lives each year since your birth
· 55th birthday – The Vietnam War begins and continues for 20 more years
· 60th birthday – The Cold War begins along with a fear of nuclear destruction.
If you’re reading this - you weren’t born in 1900. But if you look back at the events in your own life, I imagine periods of PROLONGED stability are few and far between.
Also - if you’re reading this - your trials have yet to completely take you out. And I think that’s because, ultimately, you’ve allowed trials to TEACH you, not TAUNT you.
Now, for many of us, COVID-19 has taken the game to a completely new level. BUT, if history is any kind of indicator, this will NOT be the last trial that we endure. So the question is, how can we allow the trials we’re facing to TEACH us, not TAUNT us?
If our mindset becomes a “vaccine mindset,” we will always be dependent on external circumstances to dictate our lives.
A vaccine mindset TAUNTS us. A growth mindset TEACHES us.
Think about this - how did those who lived from 1900 to 1999 survive so many trials? Well, according to anecdotal research, they found ways to live and love AMIDST the trials they faced. They embraced a growth mindset best summed up by what CS Lewis penned during WWII.
“If we are going to be destroyed, let that bomb, when it comes, find us doing sensible and human things – praying, working, teaching, reading, listening to music, bathing the children, playing tennis, chatting to our friends over a pint and a game of darts – not huddled together like frightened sheep and thinking about the bomb. They may break our bodies but they need not dominate our minds.”
What I am NOT saying is we head to the bars. What I am NOT saying is we pretend that there is no virus, no injustice to be resolved, and no social unrest happening. Those who lived through bomb raids knew there was a real threat and were wise enough not to not live recklessly. (In fact, every night, they drew the shades in their homes to avoid being seen).
What I AM suggesting is that we CONTINUOUSLY, CREATIVELY and COURAGEOUSLY invest in the only things we can control – our bodies, souls, minds and relationships.
· We can continue to learn.
· We can continue to listen.
· We can continue to take care of our bodies.
· We can continue to read with our children.
· We can continue to love our neighbors..
· We can continue to use our strengths (even if virtually) to stand up for what’s right.