“Love in the times of COVID-19”
As an avid traveller, and a woman who likes to get out of her comfort zone, the fear of leaving my house hasn’t phased me. Yet, right at my doorstep, I have friends and family who are overly cautious and paranoid about touching anything.
Daily messages through the media are constantly bombarding me with news that brings on racism, violence, hardship and an absolute lack of compassion for one another. How did this happen? How did we start a war with each other, which we didn’t even begin. Are we all doomed to live in hysteria while we mock our fellow brothers and sisters for having a virus? Isn’t it our duty as global citizens of the world, to comfort each other through education, love and balance?
The bombardment of sad and bad news has overtaken the world and engulfed humanity to the point of isolation. How can we treat each other like this. We have to be smart about our choices and be cautious of warnings, but living in fear is definitely not the way.
Creating a healthy and balanced lifestyle for you and your family is paramount to surviving this virus. Cleanliness and hygiene are the main points to staying somewhat ‘germ free.’ Eating healthy, exercising, avoiding overly crowded places, is a given. But what I’m trying to state here, is that we need to stop scaring each other. Let’s take the necessary precautions and band together to make sure we wall live in harmony together as a community.
The bursting at the seams information catapulted to us on a daily basis has had me wondering if all of this is under exaggerated, over exaggerated, true, hurtful, kind, unkind. Corona has had me in a tailspin!! And I’m not talking about the beer here. What we all need to do is to show compassion for those who have contacted the virus and allow them to heal in peace. If it’s true that all of us may at some point succumb to the virus, then why can’t we just leave the topic alone. Let’s manoeuvre our thinking towards a positive attitude and living in the moment rather than fearing the worst.
I am shocked to hear that some acquaintances I know go to bed with severe panic attacks, not being able to sleep, and incessantly wondering if her and her four kids might contact the virus. Or another acquaintance of mine, who sprays people in front of her so they don’t come forward to hug or kiss her. What has happened to society? Are we losing our minds? Maybe the Thais and the Indians always had it correct when they fold their hands to say Sawasdee Ka or Namaste. Yes, I do acknowledge the divine in you, but please don’t touch me. That might be the right way to go.
And what about our kids. At school they are subjected to hearing countless tales on the playground of who might have the virus, and who was off school, and “did you know…” Children are our future, let’s not ruin their thinking and cause them to live in a world that is sometimes so unkind. I hope we can find a way to foster community and family, while moving forward without ostracising anyone. So, keep clean, smile, be healthy and always have a warm heart. – this is how we survive, with love, in the COVID-19 virus.
