Thoughts on adversity
Individuals perceive reality and respond in diverse ways. While some people freeze, rant, or panic, others stay grounded, calm or introspective.
The thinkers become philosophers particularly during the economic fallout of the pandemic.
There are things to ponder. How do we endure the unendurable? How do we find a sense of certainty and order in an uncertain universe? We have to untangle the ethical questions and find the answers to the urgent quandaries.
When we reframe the questions and alter the perspective, we learn ( or polish) a new skill that is helpful and invaluable during all kinds of situations.
History has shown that the bad times such pandemics, social unrest, and economic upheavals have produced great thinkers. Philosophers have insights or what is called “earned wisdom.” These thoughts are definitely relevant during this prolonged crisis.
COVID- 19 has brought us down to earth. It punctured the self-inflated egos of those superior characters who were selfsufficient and knew everything. The pandemic has removed our anchors and set us free to float on unchartered waters. This generation of Millennials, the Baby Boomers of the 1960s and ’70s, Gen X are adapting and adjusting to new ways of thinking and doing. It takes time to change, but then the passage of time has become subjective.
Socrates was considered the patron saint of Philosophy. He lived and rose to prominence during the era of Athens’ decline as a great power. It was a terrible time. The fall was worse due to military adventurism, and the bubonic plague. Just as the ancient Chinese see a crisis as an opportunity, Socrates had a similar view during his troubled time.
He gathered the Athenians who were well respected and revered — the poets and generals, among them. When he questioned them, they revealed their weaknesses. They were not as wise as he expected. The general could not define courage. The poet could not define poetry. It was a major disappointment to discover that these respected people did not know what they were supposed to know.
In the context of the present lockdowns, we have been forced to pause. We have to think deeply and question the ingrained assumptions and beliefs. Only then will we discover the roots of wisdom.
Although we all crave and yearn for a return to our old life, the accustomed ways, we are disoriented and have yet to define the word “normal.”
It has been said that we need courage but we may not really know what courage means.
One thing is certain in this time of uncertainty. We are undergoing a process of transformation — physically, mentally and spiritually — in the way we think and how we view others. We now include in our list of heroes the frontliners, doctors, nurses, health and humanitarian workers, the guards, the staff of supermarkets and drugstores, the street cleaners, the technicians, the housekeepers and drivers. These are the heroic people who deserve recognition and our gratitude because they are exposed to the invisible dangers — to protect us and to make our world a safer place for us.
PERCEPTION OF REALITY AS A MEANS OF COPING
Pragmatists see things as they are. Black or white. Optimists look at the positive side — the silver lining of dark clouds, “halffull” vessels, th2e possibilities in a dark world. Pessimists, in contrast, see the gloom and doom, the “half-empty” glasses, the void in their gray lives. Romantics view the world through a rosecolored prism. “La vie en rose.” The jaded cynics rarely find pleasure in rainbows and butterflies. Nothing excites them anymore. “Been there, done that.” It’s a defining attitude that is dull, flat and uninspired.
Self-image is a highly subjective, sensitive issue. One’s selfesteem could be affected by someone else’s perception, accurate or otherwise. The mind can play tricks on the eyes. With elective vision, it edits and improves the actual image to conform to the ideal shape. Wishful thinking afflicts people to varying degrees.
The individual with a fragile ego would like to hear only positive compliments. He prefers to project an idealized image, an illusion of perfection.
The mirror may reveal the stark truth. But the human eye could choose to see an altered state, an enhanced virtual reality. Thus there is a disparity between fact and fantasy.
A weight-challenged delusional woman “sees” a svelte, chic, and elegant reflection. A rotund man fantasizes a tall, dashing, macho image. It is an ego-boosting optical illusion. A trompe d’oeil, or trick of the eye. The wardrobe is a minor disaster. Clothes are inappropriate and ill fitting because of the mismatch between fact and illusion.
What would matter, ultimately, should be not form but substance. Attitude of security, confidence and self- confidence and self-worth make all the difference.
French author Malcolm de Chazal commented wryly, “Monkeys are superior to men in this: When a monkey looks into a mirror, he sees a monkey.”