I realized early on in the vaccination process that there was a spiritual component to the decisions people were making, and that those choosing not to be vaccinated often seemed to have strong spiritual beliefs that grounded their choice.
For myself though, I framed it as an evidence-based decision, and was not inclined to take the shot because the evidence was clearly not in. As well, psychological factors predisposed me to take a pass on it: Zero faith in authority, and a high level of innate non-conformism, made my initial vaccine 'hesitancy' a natural stance.
Here in British Columbia the hammer started to come down hard in the Fall of ’21, with coercive mandates preventing the unclean from mixing with the clean. By this point the unvaccinated were banned from entering most businesses, travelling on airplanes or trains, holding most jobs, or crossing international borders. I weighed the pros and cons, and thought "Well, OK, I don’t trust it, but this will get really ugly in a lot of ways if I don’t get the shot, and hey… why should I be right this time, when my concerns are usually overblown?" So I scheduled an appointment to get the shot.
Woke up the day of the appointment with immense clarity that I COULD NOT do this thing, no matter what the cost. There was something at stake that went beyond all the pros and cons, risks and rewards. Something absolutely fundamental – It literally felt more fundamental than life and death.
An aphorism from a novel I read decades ago – "Person must not do what person cannot do." – came to mind, and that is how it sat.
I discussed it with my wife, and we both chose not to take the shots. As hard as it got, and as dark as it looked – and in the winter of ’22 the outlook for the unvaccinated here in Canada was very, very, dark – we never hesitated and never wavered. Our choice was made.
I wonder… did some others here have this kind of moment of deep radical clarity at some point in your decision? Or was it different for you, with your choice arising out of either rational analysis or existing spiritual foundations, or a mix of both, with no 'revelation' needed?
The Epiphany (A reflection thread on pandemic choices)
I realized early on in the vaccination process that there was a spiritual component to the decisions people were making, and that those choosing not to be vaccinated often seemed to have strong spiritual beliefs that grounded their choice.
For myself though, I framed it as an evidence-based decision, and was not inclined to take the shot because the evidence was clearly not in. As well, psychological factors predisposed me to take a pass on it: Zero faith in authority, and a high level of innate non-conformism, made my initial vaccine 'hesitancy' a natural stance.
Here in British Columbia the hammer started to come down hard in the Fall of ’21, with coercive mandates preventing the unclean from mixing with the clean. By this point the unvaccinated were banned from entering most businesses, travelling on airplanes or trains, holding most jobs, or crossing international borders. I weighed the pros and cons, and thought "Well, OK, I don’t trust it, but this will get really ugly in a lot of ways if I don’t get the shot, and hey… why should I be right this time, when my concerns are usually overblown?" So I scheduled an appointment to get the shot.
Woke up the day of the appointment with immense clarity that I COULD NOT do this thing, no matter what the cost. There was something at stake that went beyond all the pros and cons, risks and rewards. Something absolutely fundamental – It literally felt more fundamental than life and death.
An aphorism from a novel I read decades ago – "Person must not do what person cannot do." – came to mind, and that is how it sat.
I discussed it with my wife, and we both chose not to take the shots. As hard as it got, and as dark as it looked – and in the winter of ’22 the outlook for the unvaccinated here in Canada was very, very, dark – we never hesitated and never wavered. Our choice was made.
I wonder… did some others here have this kind of moment of deep radical clarity at some point in your decision? Or was it different for you, with your choice arising out of either rational analysis or existing spiritual foundations, or a mix of both, with no 'revelation' needed?
Share your story, if you will!