Imagine…You Can’t Get Through a Pandemic Without Grief

I notice a lot of us looking for humor in the pandemic. Ways to channel our anxiety and energy around all that we can’t control. This past week I myself got some enjoyment amidst the fear when a college friend tweeted several times about his hate for the Imagine video that Gal Godot put together, ostensibly, to inspire hope. He’s a music guy, so initially I thought it might be because Imagine is sort of tired and overdone (sorry, John Lennon fans, but this is not my favorite one and I might be more of a George Harrison girl). But the part that got him — really irked him (and many other people) is the banality and uselessness of celebrities using their influence to prescribe hope. And from a pure gut reaction, that bugs the crap out of me, too.

But, why? I ask myself. Isn’t it really nice? Are my college friend and I being too hard on the celebrities?

Well… I have an additional perspective of being a grief therapist, so I take that perspective on what is happening in humanity right now. And I’m also from the Midwestern United States and that means I’m of a hearty stock of common sense people, so here are some thoughts about our collective grief in these very beginning stages of this historic, and very sad time.

This is some real stuff we are going through and it ranges from unpleasant to tragic. We…