Reassuring people in fear during COVID-19


It's October of 2021, and I am continuing my project of trying to reassure people who are in fear. COVID-19 is still a big problem, in spite of the fact that vaccines have been available for a long time. People like me kinda figured that it would be all over by now, but we were wrong, and there are still people out there getting sick, and dying from it. It seems an awful shame, but it's just human nature in action, a kind of human nature that I've seen all of my life, fear. I'd like to help.

No, I don't have all the answers, I can't wave a magic wand, and it's actually not true that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself. There are a lot of terrible things in the world that you would be wise to fear. Getting a horrible contagious disease is the one that's on my mind mostly nowadays, but the list goes on and on.

So, here's my "fireside chat". I do this on the internet, and when I see people IRL (In Real Life) I try to keep the same reassuring tone. I'm not Franklin Roosevelt (and if you knew FDR you know that I'm no FDR), but I'm inspired by people like him.

When I first started teaching, back in 1996, I was surprised at how much reassuring that I needed to do. I had imagined that sharing technical information would be most of the job (it was teaching computer software), but I spent most of my time reassuring people who were frightened. Telling them that "there's nothing to be afraid of" or "the computer won't bite you" are the things that seem logical to say, but they're the worst things to say. These people needed gentle reassurance.

A good friend of mine helped me with my vocal production. I genuinely wanted to help, and I wanted my voice to sound that way. I have a slightly-nasal baritone, and I learned to lift it up a little bit to a softer tenor. I listened to reassuring voices, from Mr. Rogers to Jeff Goldblum. Sometimes people get scared.

Thank you for joining me on my fireside chat today. I'll be back soon, and we'll talk some more.

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