Mind-Body-Spirit, a Flexible Friend

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber

Around the world, many if not most of us still subject to safely regulations due to the pandemic are nearing the end of our tether; the stress of having to cope with the absence of loved ones and friends in our daily lives continues to make itself felt.

While we can but keep looking on the bright(er) side of life, it is easier said than done. We have no choice, though, but to fight Covic19 and its variants and let common sense take the lead in playing our part to protect not only ourselves, but others too. Those who view safety precautions as an affront to everyday human rights are simply being selfish.

The police handling of the vigil for Sarah Everard on Clapham Common is a case in point. While I support it in so far as it was not only meant as a show of support for Sarah’s grieving family, but also protesting about violence against women in general, this is not the time to raise our voices. Too many people and too little social distancing at this particular moment in time, when Covid-19 and its variants are still rampant across parts of Europe and a real threat to us here in the UK, was irresponsible; it had been banned for the same reason, not because the powers-that-be are unsympathetic.

Yes, civil liberties are restricted at the moment, have been for some time, and feelings are running high, even more so at the murder of an innocent woman simply returning from visiting a friend.  

Yes, the police may well have seemingly over-acted at times, but what were they meant to do when calling upon the crowd to disperse and some people refusing to move?

Yes, of course women and girls should be able to feel they are free to walk any streets anywhere in the world without fear of being attacked and, yes, their voices need to be heard. Even so, at the moment, large gatherings risk spreading the coronavirus, and that is a threat to everyone.

MIND BODY SPIRIT, A FLEXIBLE FRIEND

Ahead, gloom,
self-confidence all but zero,
no sense whatever
of being able to rise above
a troubled mind
caught unawares by questions
demanding answers
where there are none,
only more of the same 

Ahead, despair,
ego despatched into free fall,
its host body
left battling against all odds
just to exercise
its human right to give as good
as it gets, refusing
to take any cues from either sense 
or sensibility 

Suddenly, a light,
all but dazzling an inner eye
grown weary
if not yet (quite) glued shut
by fear, prised open
for the duration by such forces
as will always
get the better of the worst we suffer
if we let them 

I am Mind-Body-Spirit, would-be adviser;
who heeds me grows all the wiser

Copyright R. N. Taber 2021

[Note: Apologies. This poem first appeared on the blog under the title 'A Word to the Wise... until I realised I had used that title elsewhere so had to think again; I could blame lockdown stress, but suspect growing old has a lot to do with it too.] RNT