Have you grieved?
Have you grieved?
It's been a year since the entire world changed. I don't remember the exact day, but I remember this overwhelming feeling that things were changing. Being a bit of a news junkie, I had been watching this mysterious illness spread across the world. As the spread inched closer and closer, it became more apparent that Americans really felt unaffected by what happened in the rest of the world. News stations were beginning to report on this growing threat more, and the world started to shut down. Americans continued with their lives as if we were incapable of being affected by what was happening "over there." I traveled out of town to train and remember as my co-trainers poked a bit of fun at my prepping mentality. Although it seemed that more attention and concern was present, most felt that it was not something that would significantly affect us. I do not share this to say anyone was intentionally ignorant. We, all of us, really had no idea that everything would change when we returned home. The week we returned, the NBA canceled games, and everyone began to pay attention. It feels so American that we let the shutdown of sports be the event that catches our attention, not the reports of people already sick and dying in other countries. So a year into this pandemic, I ask,
Have you grieved?
This unfolded differently for all of us. We were all affected differently and coped with it in different ways.
Have you grieved?
For us American's, living through a pandemic was not enough; we had to walk through the most volatile and destructive political season in our country.
Have you grieved?
Death and loss by the hands of an unknown virus were not enough; we had to watch humans be murdered while they went for their daily run, by the hands of those who swear to protect us, while they slept.
Have you grieved?
June 2, 2020. Phoenix, Arizona. Arizona Church Stand Together for Black Lives.
I posed this question on my Facebook as I was writing this: "It's been a year since the world began to shut down. Have you let yourself grieve these past 12 months? What have you grieved?"
The comments varied from losing loved ones to isolation to missing out on important life events, to the struggle of the constant canceling of plans, to long-term health issues, to splintered families over politics and masks.
Grief, all different, all valid, all loss.
What have you grieved?
Have you grieved?
As I was writing this, I got a notification from the New York Times that one in three Americans has lost someone to the coronavirus.
Have you grieved?
It is not a measure to what degree you have felt the weight of this past year. Instead, it is simply an acknowledgment that we have all lost something.
Have you grieved?
At the time of writing this, over 500,000 Americans have died from this virus and over 2.5 million worldwide.
Have you grieved?
I ask this because we are living through a collective trauma. No matter how much you are removed or choose to be removed from the pain of this season, the truth is we are all affected. Some will acknowledge the loss, pain, and grief of this season. They recognize and empathize with the pain of those around them. Others will simply move on.
In a season where our individual concerns and opinions have wreaked havoc, will we choose to collectively move forward?
But it starts with each of us, allowing ourselves to grieve what we have lost this season, then looking to those around us and grieving with them as well.
So I ask, have you grieved?
Will you allow yourself to sit with the pain of this season so that we can move forward collectively?
Will you allow yourself to sit with the pain of others who have lost much this season?
Will you grieve?
It's been a year. Have you slowed down enough to acknowledge the disruption of your world?
What is keeping you too busy, too distracted to see clearly?
Have you allowed yourself to identify the emotions that you have experienced in this season?
Have you allowed space to check in to realize where you carry the heaviness of this season?
Have you been vulnerable with someone else about how you are really dealing with this?
Have you grieved?
Grief is the beginning of healing.
Healing is something we so desperately desire from this season.
Not just from the virus but from the emotional burden of this season.
Healing starts with grief.
Have you grieved?
I have practiced using the Psalms as prayers through different times of struggle, grief, injustice, and pain. Psalm 143 gave voice to the desperate prayers whispered during a series of unjust events I have faced.