During extraordinary times, the very physics of everything will produce events, and therefore happenings, that would otherwise not happen. Everything that happens is the result of another happening which in turn starts another happening... Are you with me ?
We know so much and yet so little of our universe and actual being, but one thing is for sure, events do happen, and those events make other happenings, happen...
The creation of a new star, the formation of planets, the spark that starts life, the evolution of everything from a tiny microbe to a Blue Whale, the largest creature ever to have lived on Earth.. are each and all the result of something happening.
Is this too deep for you ? or if like me, you find it fascinating that something so small can create something so big, it is truly astonishing. We relate our everyday lives to how we perceive the world around us to be, which is very understandable, because we get so very wrapped up in our everyday lives that often neglect to reflect on the wonder of everything, or even just those we should be thinking of and doing something for.
But then a "happening" comes along, and we are forced to think about life and our lives in a different way, and one which literally refocusses our views, our beliefs and understanding of everything around us. It could be the death of a close one, the birth of a child, the news that you have cancer or your days are even more limited than you thought. It could be a natural disaster like a tsunami or a volcanic eruption, a massive storm or a tornado, or as we are finding out now, a tiny virus... so tiny but so responsible for death around us. And that tiny little thing, is destroying the worlds economy, isolating millions from each other, and destroying lives by the tens of thousands... And yet, its mother and father, and theirs too, has always been around us, finding new ways to conquer our immune systems, new ways to evolve and re-generate, if we give them the opportunity to.
But as human beings, and as low in our minds as we can sometimes become, with a feeling of despair and negativity, we somehow manage to find a spirit within us, and we do extraordinary things that maybe just a few days before, we though impossible. One such event has happened recently in England. Many if not all of you will have read about Captain Tom, a 99 year old veteran of World War Two, who on seeing the need for more money for the NHS ( National Health Service ) of the UK, he decided to walk up and down in his garden using his walking aid, and to try to raise one thousand pounds to give to the NHS. But his extraordinary resolve and courage caused an internet sensation, and instead of his target of one thousand pounds, he has raised millions, via an online donation system, his vision caught the imagination of the world.. Extraordinary times create Extraordinary People.
So, amongst the doom and gloom of thousands dying, the fall of world economies, of which I have no doubt will cause many more to suffer in the months and maybe years to come, one happening gave rise to another happening, that became 'extraordinary'... and this event is not isolated, not even unusual, because as it is said by physicists, the whole universe came from a tiny dot creating a Big Bang, that created the multitude of galaxies, trillions of stars and planets, and who knows how many creatures and civilisations beyond our comprehension.. each event or happening making in turn another happening, from Dinosaurs to fleas, and from pandemics to a retired Army Captain, doing what comes naturally to his kind.
So tonight, as you drift to sleep, and wonder what you could do that's extraordinary, think on this. Everything in the entire universe is already extraordinary, every star, planet, creature and microbe. Even this virus, and all of its descendants to come... I applaud those who have the guts and vision to walk the path to raise the cash to help the millions, because within us all we each have the ability to be extraordinary, because we already are, even you ! .. we each just need to prove it.
Andrew J Bannister