Aflevering Episode 22: Corona Extra: The Next Step: Contributing To The Bigger Picture

This podcast part of my free Corona toolkit, which you can find at https://meditatie.amsterdam/en/covid-19-2/ In times of crisis the attention often primarily goes to the own survival. Our activated primitive system leads to stress, restlesness and self-centered behaviour. gedrag. It takes a lot of mentale development to move beyond that in the acute phase, especially when the people around you are also stressed. What can be even more contagious than the virus itself. See what happened in supermarkets, where people went to pretty relaxed but came out with more than they planned to buy.With this panic reaction the least social side of humans can surface, but in these times of crisis you also see the most social side of human arising. A lot of beautiful initiatives emerged. From former IC staff that offered to go back to work till people that help the weak and elderly with shopping, and from people that do big donations for care or research to companies that offer their services for free like my podcasthost Buzzsprout that gave me free space for this initiative. Also the view on the positive side effects that every crisis brings along are noticed more. Liek the flurishing of the climat and the people rediscovering nature, the awareness what is really important in life, what are essential professions and less crime and more collective thinking. We realise now more than maybe ever before, how dependant we are of people that work in the food industry, healthcare and childcare. If the virus in it's rapid spreading showed us one thing, it is how interconnected we are. And this interconnectedness is also the force behind the extermination of it. Just like with other big issues like climat and economic crisises, the solution is in working together and all contributing to the bigger cause.When more overview and peace of mind occurs, where the first meditations in this toolkit were mainly aimed at, the comes also more attention for the world around you. Is there more space for 'we' instead of just personal survival, and more the urge to contribute to the greater cause. You don't have to be ashamed if you over shopped or didn't apply as a volunteer. Your insight and focus can shift every moment. You only have to approach your fellow citizen as you possibly having the virus instead of the other one can potentially infect you, and yoru interaction will change completely. To keep the view on the bigger picture is important now. As a solution but also to prevent a fallback. Because where time brings overview and more peace of mind, the longer the restrictions are maintained also can lead to new restlesness and selfcentered behaviour. Focus on compassion is a good step forward, for your fellow human beings but also for yourself. And with meditation you can even in isolation contribute to the bigger process. How that works, I will explain in this podcast. If you want to read about the exercise I mention at the end of the podcast, you can find it on this webpage when you scroll down to ‘Connect Yourself’.