It is with a heavy heart and great concern that I follow the news in recent days. According to reports, in addition to stocking up on basic essentials Americans are also purchasing guns and ammunition. It seems gun sales boom all across the nation amid the coronavirus pandemic. Needless to say, this disturbing phenomenon is unique to the United States. A wealthy country rated as a third world country when it comes to public health. And at a time when a virus is ripping through the world, concerned Americans feel that the way to protect their family is to arm up. Seriously? How about if instead of wasting time devising strategies to protect against the most vulnerable, we rise up and figure out ways to help the less fortunate? What if those who have the means to buy a gun would donate the surplus to those in need instead? I hope this madness stops and the outbreak brings out the best in humanity.
Hollywood post-apocalyptic movies tell us that we, humans, are prone to unravel and lose all rationality and humanity in a disaster, looting and killing each other. But the thing is, whatever we think about the world and our humanity becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. To live in a world that is morally good, we have to believe in the goodness of humankind, starting at home, in our own choices and actions. I have to go back in time, to the Holocaust, mankind’s darkest hour, the genocide of Jews across German-occupied Europe. And it could happen not because of the people who ordered and executed these horrible deeds but rather by the infinitely many others who let it happen, the silent bystanders. However, even in the darkest of times, there were many flickers of light. During the holocaust, there were people who stayed true to their humanity and helped Jews despite great risk to their personal safety and that of their family. We must learn from these people and uphold them as our standards of morality, as a shining beacon of humanity.
To learn more about people who risked their lives to protect their Jewish neighbors, those Righteous Among the Nations, visit Yad Vashem, The World Holocaust Remembrance Center for Stories of Righteous Among the Nations.
Right now, there is so much uncertainty, so much that we simply cannot control. But we can always choose kindness, compassion, benevolence, and generosity. We each have the choice to spread goodness, not evil. The most important question we can answer is: “what is the meaning of life if we do not strive to live a life of valor?” I do not want to live in a world that is heartless and inhuman. In that case, stop the world and let me off. Wait, do you want to live in a post-apocalyptic world in which all of the survivors are those people who were willing to shoot their neighbors? Let’s affirm the value of life by committing to be people of valor even if that would be at a cost to ourselves, be it our last deed. Let us reaffirm our faith in the dignity of humankind, the extraordinary resilience of the human spirit, and our moral strength, even during tough times. The way we choose to live our life is the best way to teach our children how to live theirs. What will be your social, emotional, and spiritual legacy?
Let me leave you with the wise words of the Dalai Lama: “Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them humanity cannot survive.”
Be safe, be healthy, be well, and be kind. Be a person of integrity and honor.
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