Longing

 

"It is okay if it takes time

for this mountain to be climbed"

-Morgan Harper Nichols

 

It's human nature to seek out connection. We are social creatures with brains wired to receive pleasure from a hug or laughter. Maintaining distance from family and community is effective in disease control but damaging to our mental well-being. Prolonged isolation has been shown to be damaging to our brains. So how are we to find connection in the midst of a global pandemic?

"This too shall pass" I've repeated to myself over and over for the past year. I know that impermanence is a law of nature; nothing lasts forever be it good or bad. I've tried to find connection online with groups of like minded people. I've tried to do video chats with loved ones. I've tried learning something new in online classes. It's like a bandaid on a bullet wound. For a moment it seems like a good idea. But it's no substitute, it won't address the root problem. We need human connection. We need touch; whether it's a handshake, a hug, a supportive hand on the shoulder. We need to look into each other's eyes and listen to to complex nature of verbal communication. 

I'm longing for those things. I know we all are. Our brains are trying to figure out who we are with that human connection. But time will march on and we will once again be able to embrace. You are not along in your longing and your sorrow. We miss each other. Just remember "this too shall pass".