You Are Not Alone

With COVID-19 having left glaring bruises on most of our backs, a change of mood is much in need.

Loneliness hits some people like a small seed, its little tendrils curling slowly across the body, regardless of the pandemic. In no time one finds oneself living and breathing that inexplicable, black shadow. But with a little effort, a trivial, humble detail in our surroundings dispels the shadow.

A boy clad in patched up clothes sits quietly on the old mat with frayed edges. The dim glow of the bulb lights up the meager furniture of the room. Thoughts of his father slapping a cane on his back and his mother fleeing through the back door that sunny afternoon flood his eyes. He presses his schoolbooks to his chest. The light reflecting in his eyes come to life as the tungsten wires flicker. Something about the bulb stirs the little child’s heart, and he opens his books.

A bloody gash on the knee of a solo hiker robs her of comfort. Tending to her knee seems like a formidable task in the absence of company. Then a bird cheerfully hopping and splashing in a spring arrests her sight. She smiles, sighs and gets to work. A fresh dose of energy is flowing through her.

A bird pecks at a window. A tree gently sways against the breeze. A cat leans on you with her furry mane warming your leg. Christmas lights blinking brightly on a lonely rooftop ledge rushes feelings of longing in your heart. The stillness of a mountain captures you with its powerful aura while making no impact on your senses.

There are a million things present right now, all about you, waiting to rob your loneliness. A trekker wading his way through a forest trail locks out feelings of sadness. The sunlight is filtering down on the forest floor. Crickets are buzzing and soothing his ears and a soft wind is brushing against his face. The strain on his calf muscles arouses his perception of these stimuli. Long before he realizes it, he has left his troubles far behind, somewhere on the grass trampled by hiking boots.

All you need is that little push, that tiny perception of something you were unaware of before. Once you realize the presence of that something, somebody may lift you up by the hand from that strange, seamless state of limbo.

With clouds above, trees around and a cheer in your step, you are not alone.