The world is on fire. There is no getting away from it. Wherever we look, there is something terrible happening that requires our attention, calls for action, and condemnation. It can be a stimulatory nightmare just looking at the news.
It can feel that the issues that we face on a daily basis can be eclipsed by world events.
I am very cognisant of the horrific things that are happening in the world right now. We have an ongoing devastating conflict in Palestine. Climate change, and the irrevocable damage humans have done to the world. Inflation, interest rates, and a growing amount of people in poverty. I could go on, but you understand the depth of the issues we are facing.
So do we even matter?
We all have things that happen to us that feel incredibly traumatic, affecting us deeply. The state of the world around us doesn’t make this any less of a hurdle for us to overcome. Missing a travel connection, an unexpected tax bill, the loss of a loved one, a redundancy, a broken washing machine, or poor mental health.
All of these things matter.
Duality, or perhaps even multitudes can exist at the same time. World events needing attention, and personal events requiring attention - these can co-exist. It is about perspective, a wider view that allows us to balance how we spend our attention and concern.
We’re not playing top trumps of issues.
We can hold space for all the things that need our attention. Giving certain issues the energy you can, whilst still maintaining boundaries means you have enough energy to deal with the issues that are right in front of you.
It is a balancing act that acknowledges that it all matters.
On aircraft, we are advised to secure our own oxygen masks first before we help others in an emergency situation. This may be an extreme example, or it may not be, we can only help with bigger issues if we are in a good place ourselves.
TL;DR - everything matters - and personal hurdles are no less of a tribulation even though the world is on fire. So it is no bad thing to prioritise your own needs.
So in a world that is on fire, don’t feel bad for prioritising your own needs.
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