COVID19 and What Lies Beyond

Failte, Anam Cara! Let me begin this post with thanks.

Thank you to every doctor, nurse, physicians assistant, hospital sanitation staff, healthcare worker, and first responder who is going through unimaginable stress, loneliness, grief, and anxiety right now as they battle a common viral enemy the likes of which has not been suffered by humanity for over a century. Everyone has always called you heroes, but may you finally be treated like heroes and see your needs met and blessings rain down from grateful nations.

Thank you to every essential worker coming into their workplace underpaid, overstressed, worried for themselves and their families, day after day to ensure that the economic engines of the world do not halt entirely and plunge us all into desperation, chaos, and despair. Grocery workers, delivery women/men, food services, utility workers, and so many more - thank you from the bottom of our hearts. In nations that don’t already provide it, may this be the catalyst that finally sees all of you provided for with a living wage, health insurance, and the security we all deserve as human beings in a modern world. 

Thank you to everyone who has embraced science over superstition, generosity to your fellow human beings regardless of manmade borders, dedicated themselves to social distancing for the good of others as well as yourself, and put your hands and hearts to helping others however you can. Everyday now is a battle to choose hope over despair. Not only are we witnessing the ravages of this virus, but now we also contend with the depressing reality of seeing so many humans fight against love, unity, science, and common sense in the name of their bizarre sense of ‘liberty’. May the generosity of the human Soul win out over fear and the spirit of greed, hoarding, and selfishness. 

This is a Turning Point of History and we must remember that the majority are bringing Light even as a loud, ugly minority insist on darkness. May every Light Bringer right now take heart that history teaches us this vital truth: With Great Change, Comes Great Hope. 
This is not the first time it has felt like the world was burning… but there is also healing. 
Phoenixes will rise from these ashes and tears. 

As I write this, I sincerely hope and pray that each of you reading this are safe and well and may your loved ones be too. I deeply regret that this is the first chance I’ve had to truly sit and update this blog or any of my social media. From the bottom of my heart, I thank the wonderful people who have taken the time to contact me and ask about my health and my family’s. As many know, I do have an autoimmune disorder and fall under the ‘immune suppressed’ category. Along with my age and my husband’s (we’re in my late 60s), this means we fall under the most at risk group for COVID19. My daughter, born premature, has always had to take care to avoid lung infections. That said, my family and I have been taking every precaution to stay safe since the New Year including wearing masks and preparing for social distancing. Thankfully, as an author I am able to work from home and we are all healthy. 

My husband and I are deeply privileged to be riding out this storm from a position of economic safety so far. We have been fortunate to be able to go out in relative safety and bought in bulk to donate to local food banks. Though my sewing skills were rusty, I pulled out my sewing machine and have so far managed to make countless fabric masks complete with inserted 3M allergen/antibacterial/antiviral filters. 

*A tip for those making masks, I highly recommend buying 3M Filtrete Ultra Allergen Air Filters - you deconstruct the cardboard, carefully remove the wire, and you are left with a very long sheet of filter from which you can cut dozens of filter rectangles for inserting into masks; if you can’t sew, considering using Liquid Stitch or a sewing bonding material to attach this filter into ‘no-sew’ masks. Current science indicates masks with a such a filter are overwhelmingly more suited to blocking airborne viruses than merely wearing a scarf/bandana/plain material. These filters are sold in America at Wal-Mart, Target, and I even found them sold at my local grocery store in their small housewares/petfood section.*

While I wholeheartedly applaud the surge *sewing pun intended* of efforts to sew masks for First Responders, I decided to apply the need for masks by giving them away to workers at grocery stores and other essential workers who also desperately need sturdy, suitable masks to keep themselves healthy and help ‘Crush the Curve’. I deeply encourage everyone to also think of ways to help our essential workers - they are among the most vulnerable economically and yet this catastrophe has only highlighted how crucial they are to the global economy, let alone as our friends, family, and fellow human beings! With my daughter’s help, we are waiting for more elastic and supplies to arrive soon and intend to continue making masks for the foreseeable future as it is evident that until a vaccine or treatment is found for COVID19, mask wearing is likely to be with all of us for some time to come.
I’ve already been asked to make some and had inquiries about orders, but this is a work of the soul and I will give out as Fate leads for as long as we can. 

Every single one of us at this very moment are living through a true historical event. 
For some this is a temporary disruption to their lives. 
For many others this has caused a permanent, life altering shift to their lives whether to their careers or suffering the loss of loved ones. 
Either way, one thing is certain: Our World is Changed. 
Soon I will post a message concerning this Change and its impact on nature and the human Soul.

As you might imagine, along with everyone else, my own plans have been entirely altered and the slate of my schedule cleared. I had hoped to see 2020 be the year I would release multiple books, a new season of What Lies Beyond, and the release of those books on Audible audiobooks, and the beginnings of a YouTube vlog. I had plans to arrange a book tour that would have seen me visit several major cities here in the US, as well as London and Edinburgh. All of those plans have been wiped clean. 

Even if we ‘crush the curve’, given my own health issues, I cannot imagine daring to undertake plane travel until there is a proven vaccine/treatment - something that is not likely to happen for a year or two. Instead any events I may hold in the future will likely be virtual which may be a blessing in disguise. Every storm has a silver lining.
We are continuing to explore new technology and I am going back to the drawing board on certain things and hope to bring something truly special to the world between the end of this year and into 2021, likely through a platform like YouTube.

This is a time for Hope and we cannot lose sight of the support that we give to each other as living beings and the support we receive from all those who love us on the Other Side. 
Thank you to everyone for understanding and supporting me in these endeavors.

Stay safe for yourself, your loved ones, and for everyone who does not have the luxury of staying home. When you do go out, whether you are at risk or not, please wear a mask not only for your health and others but to show your awareness of how vulnerable too many are to this virus young and elder alike. Masks have been a part of daily life in Japan, Korea, China, Singapore, the Philippines, Taiwan, amongst others, for ages not just out of concern for personal health, but as a recognition that the individual has a responsibility to help protect everyone else.

We are all in this together, but we cannot be blind to those who need more help than others or the responsibilities we all have to each other. 
To paraphrase (fictional) moral philosophy professor Chidi from NBC’s superb spiritual comedy ‘The Good Place’, now is the time to truly examine “What We Owe To Each Other.”
And to quote the indomitable Helen Keller: “Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it.” 

Blessings of peace, love, and light, to all of you and your loved ones in these historic times ~ C.C. Campbell