On Transmission – A Review

People in general have a lot on their plates this holiday season. There's a lot to cover, consider, and think about when it comes to safety and for a lot of people, decade long traditions are going to be broken this year, and if you ask me that's going to lead to additional stress (in an already stressful time of year).

It’s important to note that in general, the holidays are some of the most difficult times when it comes to both mental and physical health. More people visit the ER during the months of November to January than any other time of year. That's wild! Couple that with complications related to COVID and the election cycle, and you'll notice we're not really poised to end the year off right.

So, with all that crazy in mind. Be patient this holiday season. Be patient with yourself and be patient with others. Share empathy, jokes, and smiles. And just do what you can to diminish any volatility.

Now, take all of this with a grain of salt, because, at the end of the day, you’re only emotionally responsible for yourself. It is not up to you to fix people, especially if you don’t have the energy.

This is something I have to constantly remind myself as I’m wearing thin at a new job and dealing with my own triggers and issues. I just keep falling back to levity. Where can I inject humor, value, positivity. Not only into my own life, but in others. Now, I add a stipulation where can I add that same value, but at zero cost to myself.

Where can I make a difference? How can I boost myself in a way that boosts others?

Ultimately, this is not easy. Also, it isn’t necessary. But. If you can find a way, I think now’s the time.

I think the reason holidays often are so stressful is because we end up needing to lean on each other a lot more. And for many of us, that’s not a habit we naturally have. We can feel let down or left out, simply because… well, we asked for something and we didn’t get it. Whether that’s a present, or a helping hand, or maybe even just the ability to see our family in person.

The holidays have always tended to remind me that these things are luxuries. And we can live without luxury. I mean, I lived in a closet in Brooklyn for two years, I think I can manage not seeing my cousins.

But, at the end of the day, some luxuries are worth fighting for. I think, if I may play the role of an armchair sociologist, the way that fight looks is way more important now than usual.

To me, that fight for luxury should look like people trying to figure out the best time for a zoom call and doing what we can to get our uncles to mute themselves if they’re going to play music. I think that’s a healthier way to vent aggression than flippantly ignoring health protocols and going against what’s good for society, simply because you “need a break.”

And trust me, I’m not trying to diminish anyone’s need for a break. Not in the slightest. My entire life changed from top to bottom due to this pandemic. Plans I’ve been working on for four years fell apart, whole factors of my life were functionally erased overnight and I lost the plot on some really big things I was chasing. I could really use a break.

And I know that my case is hardly as extensive as so many other people are. While my health is threatened, some people have had their health destroyed. And other people had more riding on 2020 than I even did. And they’re just as lost (if not more) than I was!

But focusing on that leads to nothing productive. Just bitterness and frustration. It makes you take shortcuts and find easy answers at a time where those can’t exist.

The world is complicated, and it is going to get more complicated. Fighting that is just going to compound everything into something much, much worse.

Now is the time to really consider value, energy, and attention. So many people are right to stand up and announce that now is the time to fight. But what we’re fighting for and with needs to be carefully chosen and backed up with respectable ideas and ethical citations.

Fight for people. Not against them. Fight for the right to live, not the right to put others lives at risk. Fight for progress toward the light at the end of the tunnel, not for stagnation and a brief flicker in the here and now.

And fight knowing that sometimes you have to pick the less bombastic and more difficult side because, well, that’s what’s right.

I know that I am likely preaching to the choir. But I see far more suggesting the opposite and that is a letdown. So I wanted to do what I could to boost myself up and add value, hopefully it did that for you too.

Thanks for reading. And I hope you have a great week.