Now Is the Time to “Look for the Helpers” and Become One Yourself
By: Marianne Jennings
Tags: Life Experience, Life, Helping Others, Self, Health

“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’”― Fred Rogers

With the coronavirus hitting pandemic status, the world seems to be in an all-time-high panic and the news and social media aren’t helping.

It just seems to fuel the fear fire that has people fighting over toilet paper, taking things out of people’s shopping carts, and acting in ways they otherwise wouldn’t.

Fred Rogers’ quote about looking for the helpers has been a source of comfort for me throughout the years. We’ve lived through a variety of different tragedies and crises in the past and COVID-19 will not be our last.

So instead of adding fuel to that fire, I wanted to take a moment and share some good ideas on ways that we can help each other through this crisis.

We are all in this together, for better or worse.

Let’s Be The Helpers

There are so many good people out there and we need to remember to not only look for the helpers but to remember that we can all be helpful to someone.

I ran across this post on Instagram on @tanksgoodnews where he shared Rebecca Mehra’s story of how she was able to help an elderly couple at the grocery store.

Read it in her own words below. Her story is split up into four separate tweets.

Sometimes it’s just a matter of being aware and looking out for opportunities to help.

Here’s another beautiful example:

There are opportunities everywhere and yes, we do need to be cautious and careful with how we help so we don’t expose ourselves or expose others, but we can still find ways to help overall.

Ideas on how to help are as follows:

1. Check on your neighbors.

Many people don’t live close to family or have people that can help if it’s needed. Check on your neighbors, especially your elderly neighbors, to see if they need anything.

You can call or text if you want to keep a safe distance to protect you both. Or if that’s not an option, talk through the door.

If you’re delivering food, you could do something similar to the doorbell ditch technique. You can call or text them to let them know you’re coming, place the supplies at their front door, ring the doorbell, knock, call or send a message and then leave. You can then watch from around the corner to make sure they got it okay.

2. Check on those in isolation or under quarantine.

Some people may have been exposed to someone with the virus and are isolating themselves as not to expose others. Or some people are sick and have been advised to isolate themselves and stay away from others.



Check on them. See if they need anything. This could be anything from getting groceries, over-the-counter meds, something to keep them from going crazy with boredom like a puzzle, a book, or even just a little chat to catch up.

Not everyone has someone close by to help them out, so we need to be that someone. Just be extra cautious and careful when you do!

3. Talk to people who might feel alone.

Not only is there a shortage of toilet paper in a lot of places, but it’s looking like there will be a shortage of social interactions. Loneliness and boredom can come as a result.

Many of us are now working from home. This is a great option, but many people may find that this can get lonely fast, especially if you’re not used to it. This may seem like an introvert’s dream, but we all need human interaction, even if you are an introvert.

One of my colleagues from work suggested we do 30–60 minute hang out sessions on Zoom or Google Hangouts, which are video conferencing platforms.

It may seem awkward at first, but it can help a lot with feeling lonely. These aren’t mandatory and people can come and go as they please.

It’s like a virtual watercooler where people can come and socialize. It’s been helping a lot.

It really doesn’t matter what you do, but try to be a little more social these days. We have the technology to do this in a germ-free way. Let’s take advantage of it.

What ideas do you have to help?

These are just a handful of ideas of ways we can help and look out for each other. What ideas do you have? Please share them with us in the comments.

If someone has done something for you that has made a difference, we’d love to hear about that too.

There are so many good people in the world. There are always helpers in times like this. Let’s do what we can to be the helpers for those around us.

Conclusion

We are all in this together and we are going to get through this together. But what’s great about it is that we have a lot of control over how we get through this.

“When it’s better for everyone, it’s better for everyone.” — Eleanor Roosevelt

Finally, I’ll leave you with this wise tweet: