Uh oh! I saw it again in this morning’s newspaper — the phrase which has been eye-opening for all of us: “Out of an abundance of caution…” This morning’s iteration was related to the security fence being set up around the Capital Building in Washington prior to the president’s State of the Union message tomorrow.
I don’t know about you but my vigilance-gene kicks in when I hear this phrase. I got to thinking about all the other times I have heard the phrase, or feel like I have. I wonder who is allowed to pronounce the activity of a situation to be out of an abundance of caution? Do you need a credential to determine what activity rises to this level?
Certainly, the Capitol’s protection is an appropriate setting for the designation. We all should hope and pray the fence is not needed tomorrow.
I came up with others:
- Masks: authorities asked us, “please wear a mask covering your nose and mouth during the height of the pandemic, out of an abundance of caution.”
- Seat Belts: I ask my young grandchildren to please buckle their child seat belts, out of an abundance of caution. This is a granddad directive and a law, not a suggestion.
- Vaccinations: I assume the coronavirus vaccine is not yet approved for children under five years old because of an abundance of caution!
- Dad’s Rule: I always suggested that my two daughters fill up the gas tank of their car when the gauge reaches half-filled, out of an abundance of caution. This was intended to eliminate the chance of them running out of gas but now it can be used to prevent the shock of paying fifty-dollar fill-up costs.
- Telephone calls to senior friends and family: Given the isolation of the pandemic, this was and is a request that may help connect with the lonely and anxious, out of an abundance of caution.
I am sure there are many more to consider, but I would leave you with this thought: When you see that someone thinks they did something or suggests something out of an abundance of caution, you should at least think about it! May the world become more safe, so as to avoid a few of the “out of an abundance of caution” considerations in the future.
At Peace 