Diaper rashes. Let’s go there.
Recently, Jackson (13 months old) had a bout of diaper rash. We’re not sure if it was due to the transition to cows milk, his stomach maturing, or the mix of foods he was eating (ie. not enough carbs and too much protein / vegetables)? But either way, he went through a week consistently pooping FIVE times a day!
As first time parents, both Tiffany and I freaked out about how often Jackson was pooping. But after talking to our pediatrician, we were assured this is perfectly normal. Actually, we were told there is a wide range of poop frequency – some toddlers only poop once every few days while others, like Jackson, poop multiple times per day!
At first, it was just annoying to deal with all the diaper changes. But after a few days, all the wiping started causing redness and rawness on his butt.
By then, Jackson connected the dots that diaper changes were going to hurt. And instinctively, he would squeeze his legs together which made it THAT much harder to wipe and clean. While that made it hard, the worst part was seeing the tears stream down his face from the stinging that he felt.
Both Tiffany and I had to psych ourselves up for diaper changes knowing how much of a struggle it would be, both physically trying to get him to cooperate, and emotionally seeing his tears and hearing his screams of pain.
Of course, we made sure to be as gentle as possible, and gave him lots of hugs, kisses, and snacks afterwards. But no matter what, during that week, every single diaper change sucked for everyone involved.
A blessing in disguise
Jackson was also uncomfortable throughout the day because of the rawness…so much so that he didn’t want to sit on his butt. And that is tough because 13 month olds spend a lot of time sitting each day while playing!
Poor baby.
Now, thankfully, his diaper rash is over. And diaper changes have gone back to normal. With it, we’ve been able to breathe a sigh of relief, build in better ways to detect and get ahead of future diaper rashes, and even see a little silver lining in all of it.
One key observation was how much Jackson stood up vs. sat down while he had diaper rash. Instead of plopping down to play with toys like he normally does, we noticed that he would stand, lean against the edge of the coffee table and / or couch, and scoot / shuffle back and forth while pushing his toy cars around.
At first we felt bad knowing how uncomfortable he was. But now, with a little distance from the diaper rash event, I see all of this as a blessing in disguise.
That’s because I believe that all the standing he did during that period will actually lead to him walking sooner. Due to his sore butt, Jackson got way more practice time standing and scooting which has improved his balance, strength, and coordination.
As of today, he can easily get up and push his walker unassisted from one end of the house to the other. He is also getting more comfortable letting go of whatever surface he is holding onto and standing on his own (for a few seconds). And when I extend my arms out, he happily reaches for them and stands up to walk with me. All three of these examples were things he wasn’t able to do before the diaper rash incident.
Now, we eagerly await his first steps…which should be coming any day now!
A blessing in disguise for bitcoin
I’m sure you are wondering, what does this have to do with bitcoin? Well, I believe that there are many blessings in disguise for bitcoin.
Here is what I mean.
On the surface, there will be short term bad news. And the knee jerk reaction is to think bitcoin will die. But, underneath the surface, it’s actually a blessing in disguise helping speed up global adoption.
Here is an example to illustrate.
Last week, the Canadian government evoked emergency laws not used in 50 years to stop Canadian truckers protesting in Ottawa.
I won’t get into the background why protests are happening. You can easily google that if you are curious.
The key point I want to highlight is that multiple millions of dollars were fundraised by supporters throughout the world for the truckers. But, the Canadian government forced these fundraising sites (like GoFundMe and GiveSendSo) to seize / refund the money. And the government has explicitly stated that they will target and block bitcoin related donations as well.
In a heavy handed way, the government has also required banks to freeze bank accounts of anyone directly or indirectly involved. Without due process! That means no arrest, no trial, no court process, no lawyers, and no jury involved.
This includes people who donate to the cause, people who are protesting, and even those who are tangentially involved.
Regardless if you are supportive of the truckers or against what they are doing, you have to admit, it’s scary to know that the government can just freeze you out of your bank account without due process. Especially in a democratic country like Canada!
Just think about the chaos that would be caused if you donated $20 before Canada enacted these emergency laws and then all of a sudden find that your bank account does not work anymore. How would you pay your mortgage, buy groceries for the family, or even pick up medicine for your baby?
While this is dark and gloom, I believe all of this chaos is actually a blessing in disguise for bitcoin. That’s because it has become a huge wake up call why bitcoin is needed in the first place.
As these protests are happening, Canadians are having an “ah ha” moment. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to project forward that maybe even if they don’t support this particular protest, it’s only a matter of time before there is another protest / cause / reason that the government does not approve of. And when that happens, they’ll have the ability and the precedence to cut off more bank accounts.
With that problem staring Canadians in the face, those affected (and those who are wary they could be affected in the near future) will naturally start looking for a different solution to store their money. And one of the key criteria will be a solution where no government / bank / intermediary has the ability to seize it.
Of course, they will find bitcoin as a solution since one of the key value propositions is that it cannot be confiscated.
When these people do find bitcoin, a subset will start learning about what it really is and how it works.
And then another subset will buy bitcoin for the first time.
And another subset of that will tell their friends and family about bitcoin.
And when that happens, it will accelerate the adoption of bitcoin among a group of people who a month ago might never have been interested in bitcoin or had a reason to care. As an example, DHH, a well known entrepreneur and vocal bitcoin critic, has just changed his opinion.
Bitcoin can be confusing. And counter-intuitive. But when the time is right, each of us will have our own “ah ha” moment about it. The blessing in disguise right now is that the Canadian government have accelerated the journey for people around the world to have their own “ah ha” moment why bitcoin is needed.
All roads lead to bitcoin, and this seemingly bad news is no exception.