Earth Gets a Timeout
What did we learn from it?
The Universe had been warning us for years.
Little hints. Pandemics. Category 5 hurricanes that form over lunch hour. A guy with a leaf blower at 7 a.m. every Saturday morning.
The other day, she decided it was time.
“That’s enough,” she said, and put Earth in the corner.
Not a metaphorical corner. An actual one. She dimmed our signal to the rest of the galaxy and let four astronauts on the other side of the moon bear witness.
The terms of the timeout were simple.
No wars. No arguing about whether the wars were wars. No ten-part X threads explaining why your side was right. No politicians lying to their constituents.
Just... go into the corner and be quiet.
Look at what you’ve done.
Think about it.
This is what a timeout looks like from afar. It looks peaceful and pleasant. From this distance, you don’t see the chaos that preceded it. You don’t see the batshit crazy ways the human race has been acting. You just see a few wispy colors set against the black nothingness of space.
Here’s the thing about timeouts. They’re not about punishment. They’re about interruption. The behavior wasn’t working, and we needed someone to stop us before we hurt ourselves.
We have the most astonishing planet in the known universe (the only one with pelicans) and we have been spending our days shouting at each other and staring at electronic boxes.
The Universe didn’t take that personally. She took it sadly.
We’re back now. Timeout lifted. WiFi restored. The politicians have resumed their lies and everyone else is still going in circles.
But something is slightly different.
Some of us remember the timeout.
We know that we are incredibly lucky to be alive and be surrounded by the miracle that is planet Earth.
We remember not to take miracles for granted.
If you haven’t already, please checkout my three “guided breakthroughs”…
▶ Ikigai Explorer helps you uncover the tensions in your life, clarify what matters most, and see more clearly what needs to change.
▶ Tell Your Story Better helps you say what you mean so others can understand who you are, what you do, and why it matters. Includes five essential versions of your story for LinkedIn and online use.
▶ Better Decision helps you think through an important choice with more structure, perspective, and rigor, so you can stop circling and move forward with confidence.
Image credit: NASA
Bruce, your message reminds me a lot of the Apollo 8 mission in 1968. It seemed like the world was tearing itself apart with protests against the Vietnam war, riots because of racial injustice, the "uprising" in Czechoslovakia put down by the Soviets. Then, 3 men in a tiny capsule very far from home sent back a picture of our planet. The blue and white marble against the blackness of space. I think we all need a reminder once in a while that we are just a very small piece of the gigantic puzzle that is our universe.