A Sense of Déjà Vu

Pit and the Pendulum

Why am I getting a sense of déjà vu? Have we seen all this before? Do you have a foreboding and ominous sense that we are stuck in some type of time warp where we keep getting sent back in time as if Doc Brown's flux capacitor or Bill & Ted's phone booth are stuck in repeat mode?

For eighteen months, nothing has been easy. And, I get this feeling that a pendulum is swinging right above me as if I am stuck in a horror novel. I'm waiting for the rats to rescue me by chewing through the straps binding me to the table. Maybe those rats are the vaccine. How 'bout that for some symbolism. 

During these months, a chasm has developed where we have alienated ourselves by cynicism to the left or right. Sense and sensibility have been kicked to the curb replaced by agitation and irrationality, causing a lack of cooperation with and compassion for our brothers and sisters.

We are at the point where we can no longer rely on politicians and news media for truth. Every fact, statistic, and scrap of evidence placed before us is refuted by the other side as lies. Are truth and integrity no longer virtues?

I see ethics as a combination of truth and integrity. Unfortunately, ethics has been replaced by power and greed. Since ethics disappeared, truth and integrity, like Jolting Joe DiMaggio, have left and gone away. No wonder we have become jaded and cynical. For many, that cynicism has turned into hate. When hate rears it's ugly head, the middle ground quickly erodes, and we become a left or a right.

The latest issues causing this chasm are a face covering and COVID vaccination. How do we overcome these issues? If you ask me and you didn't, the answers are pretty simple.

Step 1: Stop talking and start listening, but listen to the right people.

Step 2: If you received or did not receive the vaccination because of your political affiliation, I just rolled my eyes in disbelief. That determination should be made or have been made by you and your physician, unless your physician is Dr. Vinnie Boombatz. If your doctor says you should take the vaccination, then do it. If not, don't. Doctors are actually scientists who constantly do research in their field. And, they want you to live because they don't make anymore money off of you and your health insurance company if you die. Just sayin'.

Step 3: If you are asked to wear a face covering, please do so. It is an inconvenience but an easy thing to do. Here's the way I look at this issue. I wear a seat belt when driving, bike helmet when riding, and shin pads when playing soccer. I would rather do none of the above, but I do so because they are required, meant for safety, and easy to do.

Step 4: Set a good example for the everyone. When in public (especially indoors), wear a face covering. When you are outdoors, don't. We are in great need of people setting good examples like using a turn signal, holding the door for the next person, and just being a nice person. Everyone going out in public will be wearing some type of face covering for the next few weeks. If the delta variant in this area continues to track like in the UK, we will be out of the mask mandate before we know it. 

Step 5: Wash your hands, disinfect everything you touch, social distance, stay home if you don't feel good, and keep your germs to yourself. It worked last time. It will work again this time.

Working together is way past due but never too late to start. While working together, maybe we can actually learn to get along again. Wouldn't that be a novel idea and a nice thing to do!

God bless you,

Didier Aur