Are We Really At The Top?

My thoughts and prayers continue to go out to all who are, and have been, affected by COVID-19. As my own family has experienced both tragedy and triumph with COVID-19, please do your part and adhere to the safety recommendations to help spare others the pain and anguish this virus can cause. Let’s truly love our neighbors as we love ourselves and our loved ones.

As human beings our egos trick us into the false belief that we reign supreme and we alone hold the number one spot at the top of the food chain – that we’re pretty much invincible.  At first glance it appears to be that way (find out where we really are on the food chain). On a basic level, in addition to using our hands, we are also capable of making weapons to kill our prey; weapons that no other living creature on this planet is capable of making. We also have the ability to farm animals instead of hunting them, and to buy the finished product in various forms instead of hunting or farming ourselves. Pretty bad-ass right? Most humans think so.

A single living organism too small to be seen with the naked eye has managed to bring human beings to their knees.

Well, if we have learned nothing in the past six months, we should have learned that even with all of the prowess we possess, a single living organism too small to be seen with the naked eye has managed to bring human beings to their knees with no end in sight. One little virus particle that has the power to wreak havoc on a person’s health, and in the worst case, take their life. As of now, outside of current measures, we still don’t have a weapon to eradicate this virus.

Since the world first came to know of the novel coronavirus, life as we know it at the perceived top spot on the food chain has been thoroughly turned upside down. COVID-19 literally runs the world right now. While the virus doesn’t literally “eat” us the way a typical predator eats its prey, it does need us as a host to replicate and multiply. The human host is like the prey in this instance. Some who contract COVID-19 will have mild symptoms while others become deathly ill and may tragically lose their lives. Then there are those unintentional, unknowing, “potential assassins”. Those who carry the virus but have no symptoms at all.

By all accounts they wholeheartedly believe that they are healthy and well. And there’s nothing to indicate otherwise. However, they may be unknowingly exposing countless others to the virus. Some of those who are exposed may not survive it; some of those who do may have lingering effects that go on for months (possibly indefinitely) or be permanently disabled and not be able to return to life as they knew it. Still others, and thankfully the majority, will be fortunate enough to return to good health and life as they knew it pre-COVID-19. Aside from the few people we’ve heard about who were seemingly intentionally trying to infect others, very few people would want to intentionally infect other people (loved ones in particular) with something that could potentially kill them – some of whom will experience unbearable suffering before death. All of this from something so small it can only be seen under a microscope. The rush is on to find adequate treatment and a vaccine to stop the intruder that not only knocked mankind to its knees and took over the entire world, but also gives the illusion of seemingly knocking us out of our perceived top spot on the food chain.

“Think lightly of yourself and deeply of the world.“

                      -Miyamoto Musashi

The main thing to take away from this is humility. These days, if you’re conscious (as in literally awake, eyes open, going about your day) then you can see first-hand how egos and conceit can be deadly. By realizing that we not only live in a world bigger than us, but also in a universe infinitely larger than that world, we learn to respect the fact that: #1- It’s not all about us. #2- In terms of our relationship to the world we live in, we’re no different than that minuscule virus particle – one very small piece of a very large puzzle. #3- Sometimes the smallest things have the most power and can cause the most damage.

Regardless of who, what, when, where, how, or why, COVID-19 is here and we’re stuck with it until further notice. It would do us well as a species to respect the fact that there are some very small and simple, yet complex, things in existence that are far more powerful than we are. Once we release the weight of the ego, we will become light enough to rise back up the chain while remembering that no particular spot is ever permanent. But until we catch up and lighten up, COVID-19 has the lead on us in the food chain dynamic.

Let’s get lifted!

V.