LET CONSCIENCE BE YOUR GUIDE
Murray Gellen
Ever since this pandemic emerged, I have been very conscious about how I think and behave. There has been a deluge of information provided that offers us the way to protect ourselves from becoming infected with the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). I believe everyone, with the publicity at hand, is aware of how easily one can become exposed to it or how we can transmit it. So, what comes into my mind why is the number of cases so high? Why are so many people infected? Why have there been so many fatalities? I confess I have no simple answer. But I do have some thoughts about it.
Living is too complicated, challenging, and meaningful to everyone that the idea of “lockdown”, “isolation “or “quarantine” is fundamentally contrary to how we want to live. At least, to many people it is a very aversive condition. Those conditions have a severe impact on people’s survival. To put it bluntly, it is necessary to be able to work and provide life’s necessities. And it is also important to experience social interaction. We cherish our personal freedoms to enjoy life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Right now, this virus thwarts our freedoms.
So, how do we cope with what faces us each day? I think it is the inner feeling or voice we hear that guides us to the rightness or wrongness of our behavior. I prefer to call it our conscience. It’s a guide that helps us make decisions that are fair, just, or reasonable for the best interests for ourselves or others. It is our ethical awareness that is like a moral muscle we have learned to use. Sometimes there is risk involved if we decide to behave in a way different from our neighbor, relative or friend. But once we do, we live with it right, wrong, good, or bad. Remember, if your conscience is clear you have nothing to fear. Even amidst this pandemic we have the ability to adapt to the safety guidelines of washing our hands, keeping a distance and wearing a mask.
“Stay Safe”
