Dear those living in the LAND OF NOT AS IT SEEMS,
The LAND OF NAIS? What in the world is NAIS? Well its a couple of things. Its when we thought things should be one way and it turns out it was something else. Its when our expectations tell us how things should be and our experience says that we're crazy for believing that. Its when a guy tells his 3 boys a story with characters who are constantly caught off guard between what they think is real and what really is. Its 2020! Its...
THE LAND OF NOT AS IT SEEMS!
Thats right. And I'm writing this letter to all those who are living in the Land of Not as it Seems, which basically amounts to everyone living in America...if not the world!
And here's what I want to say to all those in The Land of NAIS. Things are not as they seem people! Things are presented one way to us, then our experience is something different. You know...
NOT AS IT SEEMS: This virus is deadly.
AS IT IS: You got a 99%+ chance of surviving COVID
should you contract the virus. (slightly lower if you have other
conditions such as diabetes, heart disease or compromised
immune systems).
NOT AS IT SEEMS: We should shut everything down.
AS IT IS: Shutdowns didn't do much to slow the spread of COVID.
Some countries experienced significant success without even
shutting down or with very calculated, less intrusive shutdowns
NOT AS IT SEEMS: We should keep the people at home.
AS IT IS: Politicians don't play by their own rules.
NOT AS IT SEEMS: Masks will protect you from the virus. (don't get me started!)
AS IT IS: Studies conducted on mask wearing often fail to meet the gold
standards of scientific research, i.e., placebo groups, control
groups, etc., are largely anecdotal, and not surprisingly
inconclusive. One study out of Denmark reports no
statistically significant reduction in the spread of the virus
between mask-wearers and non-mask wearers. If were going
to accept anecdotal evidence, how about this: mask wearing
is at an all-time high...so are reported COVID infections and
deaths! ...The Land of Not as it Seems!
In 2015, I told a series of stories to my three youngest boys. I had been telling these stories for some 5 years about 3 unlikely friends who journeyed across America, the world and Outer Space. The 2015 stories focused on a place called "The Land of Not as it Seems". During the early days of the COVID pandemic, it was obvious to me that something was not right. Things were presented one way but then turned out to be another. Something was going on that had little or nothing to do with the virus. It was about that time that I came across a series of 7 stories that all focused on...you got it, the Trio's adventures in the Land of Not as it Seems. In April and as I re-read the story lines that I had jotted down many years earlier, I was struck by the similarities to our 2020, COVID-dominated year. The stories told of a monster locking the trio into clear portal chutes where they could not have contact with one another and scenes from an unruly wild, wild west. It was as if the stories held some futuristic insight into 2020.
The good news about the stories is this: there was a happy ending! There was one extremely important thing that put an end to all the madness. The Land of NAIS series is at the publishers as I write this blog. We are expecting it to be available next week (December 20th) and you can read for yourself and make your own conclusions. Just go to Amazon.com and look for The Marvelous Adventures of Melitus Marphwaffle: The Land of NAIS (written by M. Russell Thomas, PhD).
Until my next letter, just know that you, my friends, are those living in the Land of Not as it Seems. ...ho knows, maybe my next letter I'll write to The Mask!
Sincerely,
Dr. Russell Thomas, PhD