Pivotal Moment in Life
– Musings of Dr. Jamie C. Hsu, 6.11.2020
COVID-19 has turned the world upside down and disrupted every aspect of our lives. At first, we stopped almost all social gatherings, public events, sports, on-site schooling and work. Gradually, society has opened up. Limited grocery shopping, doctor’s visits, beauty salons, remote work, on-line learning, fitness programs, and video streaming have become the new ways of living.
It has been painful. People have lost their loved ones, businesses, and jobs. Students can’t mingle with their classmates or have graduation or enrollment ceremonies. Weddings have been postponed, funerals are done remotely, and families have been separated. The list of suffering goes on and on. What are we going to do? In the short term, we should adhere to the advice of experts to protect ourselves and others. We should double our efforts to be kind and caring. And wait patiently for therapeutic treatments and vaccines to be developed and produced.
But in spite of all this, life will go on and we must be ready for the long run. As we emerge from these stormy and dark days, how will our lives be? Our habits and routines have been profoundly changed. We have gained a better understanding of ourselves and a deeper appreciation for others. We have reached a crucial pivot point in our lives. After the pandemic, will we be a better and stronger person? Or a bitter and paranoid person?
We can use the coming days to visualize and prepare for the post-pandemic world. We should establish more productive daily routines and form better habits. The hiatus provides us with a golden opportunity to practice some new routines and habits. Experts have told us that changing behaviors and habits requires conscientious effort and takes a long period of time. Depending on the difficulty and complexity, it may take 1-3 months to form a good habit. But the reward is for a lifetime, not only for ourselves, but also for our family, friends, and colleagues.
Please visualize the NEW YOU emerging after this pivotal moment in life. Are you getting excited and motivated? Let’s roll up our sleeves and get to work. We’ll be stronger and better on the other side of this painful pandemic storm.
生命的轉捩點
-作者 許俊宸博士
-中譯 薛乃綺
COVID-19已經把大家整個生活搞得天翻地覆。一開始，我們幾乎停止了所有的社交聚會、公眾活動、運動、上學跟工作。後來，整個社交才逐漸開放。有限的商店購物、看醫生、沙龍美髮、遠距工作、線上學習、健身規劃及視頻交流，已經成為生活中的新常態。
這實在是很痛苦。人們不但失去心愛的人、還失去了生意跟工作。學生也不能跟同學們混在一起、也沒辦法參加畢業典禮或入學儀式。婚禮也被推遲了、喪禮則是在偏僻的地方舉行、而家族也被迫分開。而苦難的清單還在繼續增加中。我們能做什麼？在短期間，我們應該要堅守專家的建議，以保護自己跟家人。我們應該更加倍努力做到仁慈與關懷，並且耐力等待疫苗以及治療藥物的開發與生產。
儘管如此，生活還是得繼續過下去，我們也需要為長期的發展作好準備。當我們擺脫這些風暴及黑暗的日子之後，我們的生活將會變得如何？我們的習慣跟過往的慣例已經發生根本性的變化。我們對自己有更好的了解、對他人也有更深的欣賞。我們已經到了生活關鍵的轉折點。疫情過後，我們會變得更好更強嗎？還是變得痛苦而偏執？
我們可以利用未來的几个日子来想一想、並為後疫情的世界作準備。我們應該建立更有生產力的日常生活、養成更好的習慣。這樣的”暫停”，為我們提供了難能可貴的機會來練習一些新的生活慣例與習慣。專家告訴我們，改變行為與習慣需要很努力、而且需要很長的時間。根據難易程度以及複雜性，養成好的習慣可能需要1~3個月。但這樣的回報是一輩子的，不僅是為了我們自己，也是為了家人、朋友以及同事。
請想像一下，在這個關鍵時刻過後，那個“新的你”。你是否感到興奮以及衝勁？讓我們捲起袖子來開始動工吧！在這場令人痛苦的疫情風暴發生之際，我們也同時變得越越強大。
