You Can’t Force Yourself to Feel Hopeful
Offering hope feels like another burden during an already heavy time
As a self-professed optimistic realist, the coronavirus has me in a bit of a conundrum. Most days, I skew toward optimism but not in an overly saccharine way. Yes, my glass is half full. But like every other person in the world, I’m inundated daily with updates on the number of Covid-19 cases and deaths, lists of the latest celebrity or government official to be infected, and newest restrictions on how to move and what we can no longer do. It’s anxiety-inducing. And with the vast majority of my family and friends residing in the U.S. epicenter of the virus, New York, I feel a few more pounds of fret added to my already anxious state.
True, these fear-based feelings are not very optimistic. And the yogi community I’m deeply ingrained in vacillates between telling me to “feel the feelings” and communicating that we must be hope-bearers during tough times like these.
Hope? I’m supposed to offer the world hope? Do these people not see I’m barely able to keep my wits about me?
Offering hope feels like another burden during an already heavy time.
