KEELEY’S APRIL 30-DAY CHALLENGE

Knowledge is the Greatest Anxiety-Crusher

Thanks Chat GPT, I didn’t realize how good it would feel.

Артём on Pixabay

Day Twenty-Two prompt: Does climate change scare you?

There isn’t much on my list of things that don’t scare me, but I’ve spent most of my life worrying about the “what ifs” and less about the certainties of what’s coming. As an empath and a neurotic, it’s too much to handle taking on the world's problems because of their magnitude. I’ve buckled at a lot less. I am in constant flight or fight mode, so forgive me for my selfish actions of not trying to save the world and the people living in it.

You might describe me as that ostrich with their head stuck in the sand, but I prefer to describe myself as a human caught in quicksand, with my body submerged so only my head is above sand level. It’s not that I’m not believing that climate change exists. It’s that I feel bound by helplessness to look the crisis in the face and act on its behalf. And through my worry, I see the changes in the weather — I am even vastly affected by its intensity.

I am burdened by the questions of “what if” rather than “what can I do?” You might call me a sissy or an excuse-maker. Call me what you will, but I already worry enough without packing on…