Just Enough

A dark cloud moves toward my home from the east this afternoon. No sky is visible through the layers of water-filled molecules tumbling in front of a wind pushing it my way. Uneasiness makes me squirm in my computer chair.

On top of everything else that’s happening in the world right now, I think, “Here comes another form of darkness.”

It’s true. Acts of violence continue against countries, women, cultures, our Earth, through wars, abductions, bombings, and stricter sanctions, pipelines and fracking. Our divisiveness and defensiveness do not ever seem to want to end.

And like the dark cloud, a virus is spreading all around our globe. One country, after the other, is dealing with a critical threat to their population by an extreme respiratory illness. The calls for restrictions on public gatherings and entertainment venues seem extreme. Yet, news from other countries tell us that without this effort to reduce contagion, we will lose more of our friends and family.

At this point, we have no idea what will happen in the next 24 hours, or in a week, or even in a year. We are charged with the prospect of our way of life changing forever. Some reports are showing that by sheltering and distancing, air pollution in large cities has been drastically reduced. Others show that water is running cleaner where industries have stopped production and resultant waste dumping. Is there a message to all of us here? Will we listen?

A comment about ‘Sheltering in Place’ made by a Book Club mate of mine was revealing. She said, “My image right now is that Mother Nature is like a mom who really loves her kids, but at some point, after warning and warning us, she's a little tired of our shenanigans and is laying down the law. We've all just been sent to our rooms to think about our behavior!”

I hope we will. I hope that the most of us will find solace in the time spent on our own. Many are complaining of boredom. I find that’s the best time for creativity or meditation or ceremony. If we can teach ourselves to keep breathing slowly and rhythmically, we can keep calm about this situation. We can all get enough toilet paper or find another means for personal care. We can all get enough food, if we each become satisfied with a little less and share our excess. We can all have enough air and water and love, if we give as much as we get.

Maybe that’s the message. That this time in history is a lesson in knowing just how much ‘enough’ is.

The rain is pouring outside now as that dark cloud passes over. At its edge is a well-defined rainbow. Just enough darkness. Just enough rain. Just enough light. May we all have just enough.