During the COVID-19 global crisis, there are ways you can make a difference.
Be Kind, Patient, and Generous
Every day, there are opportunities for you to make the world a little better. Be someone who takes the time to be cheerful, listen to people, and encourage them. Share some love. Simple acts of kindness are critical these days. It doesn’t have to be hard, you know? Wear a mask to show people that you care about their health. I know… masks. Just do it. Folks, it’s time to get out of your bubble. Reach out and say hello. Ask someone: “How’re you doing?” Sharing kindness with others will do you good, as well.
Take Care of Yourself
Stop eating junk food already, and start eating healthy. Get up and exercise. Doubling down on healthy choices translates into a stronger immune system and a better chance to survive and thrive. Head’s up: hospitals are struggling with caring for folks who are really sick right now. Don’t add to their burden. Historically, most causes of death can be traced back to personal decisions about health. Healthy lifestyle choices are something that you have complete control over right now.
Check on Your Neighbors
Call, text, email, or give a wave over your back fence. Better yet, go for a daily walk around your neighborhood and check on how folks are doing. Who haven’t you seen around the neighborhood lately? Are they OK? Reach out to people who are sheltering at home, especially those who are elderly or have mobility issues. Do they need help with groceries, running errands, picking up needed medications or supplies? Provide comfort, support, and reassurance. Loneliness is a real thing right now. You can be a light to someone. Many houses of worship and community gathering places are closed these days. Hear this: lean into the call to create and nurture community where you are. It all begins by reaching out. Cultivate new relationships. Community building begins with you.
Volunteer with Local Organizations
Local non-profits, churches, and synagogues need help to carry out their missions of caring and sharing. Get involved with mutual aid networks in order to help people meet critical needs. Many people these days struggling. They’re trying to do the best they can with what they have. It’s hard out there: layoffs, food insecurity, housing challenges, poverty, domestic abuse, intolerance, loneliness and grieving are real. You do not have to be the total solution. Be a part of the solution. You can make a difference in someone’s life, directly or indirectly, by teaming up. Who knows, the life you save may even be your own…
Set Up a “Sharing and Caring Co-Op“
There are families in your community who are struggling right now. Some may even be in your own neighborhood. Band together with like-minded people who want to help make a difference in the community by gathering needed supplies, groceries, and basic necessities. Find safe ways to drop off care packages to people in need. Brighten the corner where you are.
Take Care of Front Line Workers
Your local hospital workers, fire fighters, EMT volunteers, police, and crisis center volunteers are working really hard to keep us safe. Reach out and see if they need anything. Offer to drop off a meal, a pizza, healthy snacks, or bottled water. Sew them some masks. Ask your kids to draw some pictures and write letters of support.
Support Local Business
Small businesses are really having a tough time. Give them a hand. Order take-out food if that’s your thing. Buy a gift card for future use if you can. Post good reviews online. Spread the word about good businesses doing good things in the community. Consider donating to an emergency fund to support food service workers. Support your local bookstore by buying a book. While you’re at, start or join a book club and buy a bunch of books.
Support the Scientific Community
Scientists around the world are racing to develop new treatments and vaccines and to expand our knowledge about Coronavirus. They need your help. If you’re a science geek, read preprint articles and offer feedback to the research team or share what you’ve found with others. The two most popular preprint servers for coronavirus research are bioRxiv and medRxiv. This new approach is turning out to be an interesting way to get preliminary results out early and solicit feedback. Hundreds of new scientific articles on COVID-19 research and related areas of study are posted on preprint servers every day.
By the way, you don’t need an advanced degree in science to help. Volunteer your skills to help the research community. Are you good with your hands? Do you like making things or fixing things? Join a start-up team working to design better gear to keep us safe. Science is cool. Get your kids involved.
Stay Safe and Encourage Safe Practices
Follow guidance from authoritative and credible sources about social distancing, sheltering in place, hand washing, wearing masks, and other safety practices that help to slow the spread of the virus. Community health is a shared responsibility. The personal choices you make about practicing safety affect many lives. Seriously.
Get Involved with Government
Your voice matters. Let your state, local, and federal officials know what’s on your mind in a constructive way. Look, these folks are trying to make difficult decisions and they need your input. Seriously, they really do need your help. Support good policies, programs, and legislation. Don’t hesitate to call out bad behavior, wrong-headed thinking, and corruption. Be smart and respectful. Avoid ranting and name-calling. Shine a light on the important issues in a well-informed and intelligent way. Join forces with people who are trying to change the status quo and build a better, more civilized and just society. Fight fear-mongering and misinformation with facts. Let’s face it, democracy is hard. We need you.
Bonus:
Share your knowledge and skills with our youth. Consider volunteering as an online tutor. Children and young adults need your help with learning online and staying positive in these challenging times. Taking the time to help kids to learn is a smart investment in our future together.
Hang in there, folks. We’re going to get through this together.
Peace.