Welcome to “Our Evolving Earth,” a quick and current peek into both the bad news and the good news showing up in the evolving world around us.  It seems fitting that our first post be about the pandemic and the huge number of heroes who have surfaced in just a few weeks and months to risk their own lives, courageously and unselfishly, in order to save ours. This post is offered as an homage to the millions of heroes emerging from their sometimes unrecognized and – sadly enough – too often thankless jobs. 

First the bad news: This pandemic is, by far, the biggest human disaster of our lifetimes in terms of loss of life and the upheaval in our collective lives.  The first case of COVID-19 is thought to have appeared in China in late November of 2019. Now, in late April 2020, a mere 4 months later, there are over 3 million confirmed cases and 200,000 deaths – over 50,000 of the deaths occurring in the United States. These grim statistics are destined to grow much higher.

But, as is so often true, disasters bring out the best in humanity and the good news is that this crisis is no exception.  To all our sisters and brothers on the front lines, and although this is hardly enough gratitude to share with you for all the sacrifices you’ve made and continue to make, we nevertheless extend a heartfelt and deeply profound Thank You for all that you’ve done and continue to do in the face of these frightening, more than challenging, and totally stressful times. 

As a dear friend of mine wrote to me recently, “Now we truly know who makes America great. It’s ALL of our medical service workers: nurses, doctors, EMTs and all first responders, anesthesiologists, physician assistants, EVS (hospital cleaning staff), pharmacy workers, mental health counselors, and all cafeteria and sanitation workers.  It’s ALL of our grocery store workers and delivery services: cashiers, stock clerks, chefs and prep cooks, food bank workers, cleaning staff, truck drivers, bus drivers, warehouse workers, longshoremen, and factory workers. It’s ALL maintenance workers, fire department first responders, police, coroners and funeral services staff, teachers, seamstresses, trash and recycling collectors, postal workers, our national guard and so many more front line workers who have gone the extra hundreds of miles in their own life-times to save the day for the rest of us.”

And I would like to add that, when the stay-at-home orders are lifted, this long list will include thousands of volunteers from the many branches of the Red Cross, CARE, Save the Children, OCHA, WFP, UNICEF, and OXFAM; just to name a very few. 

You are the True Heroes; the backbone of our communities and countries around the world. There’s no doubt this song is one you live by:

Bridge Over Troubled Waters, Simon and Garfunkel, 1970

Blessings abound to each and every one of you who go to work daily in selfless service to the future of humanity on our Planet Earth.