Cosmic Considerations for a Covid-19 Crisis

Mm, shall I write about the Big Taboo? Okay, let’s put it this way: if the Voice Upstairs called down to me “Come in Gerry, your time is up”, how would I feel? Well, on a purely selfish level, I’d be fascinated and excited at the prospect of the Great Holiday in the Sky.

There again, people who work on a purely selfish level probably don’t merit the Great Holiday in the Sky.

So how would I really feel? First of all, extremely reluctant to leave behind people and jobs. To widow my wife, orphan my offspring, upset other interested people – not to be thought of. Don’t want. Shan’t do. (If given choice.) As for jobs – well, I won’t go on about this; suffice to say I’m near completing a novel whose title, “Live Again, Die Again”, indicates my outlook…

Next up, how would I feel, part two. Well, death itself isn’t all that scary. I know. I tried it in 1990. When I went into surgery at the Aga Khan Hospital, Nairobi, my chances of survival were 20% or less, and, to be honest, I felt so wiped I didn’t care about survival one way or the other. As a point of comparison, I’d say a vigorous bout of food poisoning is worse – such as after eating some street-food coconut in Athens a couple of years ago. I dare say we’ve all felt the great multi-orifice clean-out at some time or other. Your body isn’t your own any more. It’s some big mad organism determined to get rid of whatever is offending it (including you if necessary).

As I say, that’s worse. And we’ve all had it some time or other. So there you are, nothing to be scared of. You’ve tried it, you didn’t like it, but then it’s over, and you come out the other side. Cheers, you’re a hero, you can handle anything. Sorted.

Third consideration. There is, of course, a natural animal fear, and this is a good thing. It’s what prevents us walking off the edge of a cliff or pranging our car. But we don’t need to take it all that seriously. It’s an instinct, a useful instinct, but that’s all. It’s not us, just a safety measure.

Fourth consideration. What awaits us? Well, there’s plenty of info and indications if we care to look, which I’d summarise as follows. One: a Meet and Greet committee says hello – any friends or relatives who are likely to get a good response – plus or minus, depending on perception, one or more shiny beings. Two: a settling in period – doze, become orientated, get the idea of how things work, including a shiny new mark II body. Three: get going on (a) being useful to others and (b) learning, creating and exploring (yay!) 

(And if you’re anything like me, you’ll give another Yay to the idea of exploring: the moon, under the sea, inside the earth, Saturn, Alpha Centauri, how birds see, how music really works, etc – though don’t let me persuade you out of a more domestic focus: flowers, flavours, colours etc. It’s quality that matters, not quantity.)

Anyway, all this comes under the heading of First Steps. If you want heaven – beyond the sort of heaven we can easily feel on earth, you know, moment of love, joy, peace etc (“Peace ‘n’ Love, man”) – well that’s probably a bit further down the road. It’s a big universe, after all. (And probably an even bigger multiverse – “In my Father’s house, there are many mansions”, to quote from a 2,000 year old book – so there’ll be no end to the learning and exploring.)

Now, I’m a patient sort of chap, so I’m quite content to wait for the Big Treat. In the meantime, let’s all dodge the virus, be nice to each other (and not go feral with fear like we see in some news reports), enjoy some healthy walks (stepping away from clusters and individuals, of course), have some good chats (at appropriate distance), arrange grocery deliveries (there’s a challenge), and – well – do jigsaws, get creative, catch up with reading (or listening: ‘Audible’) and – even – write the occasional blog.

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If inclined, you can click on https://dimensionsbeyond.typepad.com/gerryfenge/2020/03/cosmic-considerations-for-a-covid-19-crisis.html to see this post in a different context…