Around this time last year, in between opining on local affairs and gearing up for the election, we were encouraging people to hang in there — to have patience and compassion, to be the good and to be safe during the upcoming holidays, because the sacrifices would be worth it when the pandemic finally came to an end.
But as we inch closer and closer to the two-year mark, it has become harder to have patience and compassion, to be the good and to make the sacrifices. Because we know what it will take to end the pandemic, and we have the tools at our disposal, and there are still people who refuse to do their part. Because we’re all exhausted. Because we’re all frustrated. Because our emotional stores are depleted, and it’s becoming harder to feel anything at all.
As we reach the first in a quick succession of holidays that ask us to give of ourselves, here’s a reminder that you can’t pour from an empty cup.
Before you can find patience for others, you must find patience for yourself.
Before you can find compassion for others, you must find compassion for yourself.
Before you can be good to others, you must be good to yourself.
Before you can keep others safe, you must keep yourself safe.
Very few of us are our best selves at the moment, and when you have the grace to forgive your own perceived shortcomings, it becomes easier to forgive others’ shortcomings as well. In the oft quoted words of the Rev. John Watson, be kind; everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.
There’s a fine line between self-care and selfishness, and too often we perceive the former as being the latter. When you board a plane, one of the first things the flight attendants instruct you to do in case of an emergency is to put your own oxygen mask on before helping anyone else. You can’t aid others if you are incapacitated.
Take care of yourself.
Remember to rest when you need it.
Remember to eat and to eat well.
Remember to take some time to do the things you enjoy, even if it seems there aren’t enough hours in the day.
Remember to communicate with loved ones and friends, even if it’s just to say hello.
Remember to ask for help if you need it.
And, most importantly, remember that you are not alone.
