Unsettled

A week ago tonight Damar Hamlin, an NFL player for the Buffalo Bills, suffered a cardiac arrest during the Monday Night Football game against the Bengals.  Thankfully, he received exceptional care on the field and after and is doing amazingly well for how scary it all started a week ago.  His cardiac arrest and the response since then has stood out to me for many reasons.

I have had lots of conversations about what it felt like to sit and watch the dynamics playing out on television.  As his teammates stood as a protective guard around Damar and the medical personnel working desperately to save him, the heaviness and intensity of the emotions they were feeling were obvious.  As the night went on and the reporters, NFL commentators and sports analysts talked about what had unfolded, the emotions were always just below the surface.  There was fear.  There was uncertainty.  There was (guarded) hope.  There was a desire to know more.  And there was a deep desperation across the country to DO SOMETHING!

The situation with Damar Hamlin replicated on a large scale what takes place when something bad happens in the world around us.  We often feel helpless, but we want to help.  We want answers to try to understand something that doesn't make sense.  We are overwhelmed or scared or sad and we want to connect with others who are feeling that way too.  In short, we want to do something.  Something that can give us some sense of control to how unsettled we might feel.  Something to say that this matters.  Something to say we see the person or people hurting and to show that they are not alone.

This was evident over the past week in huge ways across the country and in the NFL.  Immediately after he collapsed on the field, people were constantly refreshing their news feeds looking for updates and praying for good news.  Millions of dollars were donated to the charitable foundation Damar Hamlin had established. NFL teams, players and fans changed their profile pictures to show support for Damar.  People posted messages, held candlelight vigils, and prayed outside the Cincinnati hospital where he was fighting for his life.  And during NFL games across the country today there were so many hats, shirts and signs celebrating Damar on every NFL field.  

Now that he is doing so well, I can say with relief that I love the sense of unity and love this tragic situation has sparked.  It was a refreshing coming together by so many people all supporting this athlete and his recovery.  Obviously, I wish he never had to face this situation, but it was powerful to witness the reactions that he sparked.

I know that a lot of you go through things that are major, life-altering situations in your own life.  And while it won't draw the attention of the whole country, I do hope you look around you and see that your friends, family, and community are around you with a desire to do something too.  Sometimes it can be hard to allow people to step in and help, but remember, it is important because you need it and they need to give it.  And if you see someone in your life struggling with something and you find that unsettled stirring where you just want to do something - keep showing up in whatever ways feel right for you because it does matter!