Yes, COVID continues a deadly cycle and as acknowledged by the scientists, it is here to stay like any seasonal flu and the common cold. It is nasty but tameable as we have tamed other beastly microbes. There's good news, though, as scientists hope to eradicate HIV/Aids by 2030. Other life-threatening diseases like smallpox and poliomyelitis have already been nearly wiped out. I don't think totally, because there is a likelihood that these viruses continue to lurk somewhere in forests and other places and could return in mutated forms.
Pandemics, like many other life-changers—wars, famines, and Natures' forces of earthquakes, tornadoes and hurricanes certainly traumatise, turning societies upside down. It all depends on how we look at these forces that are part of life and not unexpected, although most times, we are unprepared for the tumultuous effects on our psyches and sense of safety and well-being. We often view these extreme events as unwanted and disastrous intrusions we can well do without. But these life-changing disasters also hold opportunities for us to reflect and change attitudes. There are opportunities for more efficient ways of working and governing ourselves, deepening understanding of our interconnectedness to each other, the natural world, and the greater universe. We all see life differently. Calamities sometimes force us to change our belief systems and open our minds to new experiences.
Friends who have had COVID all said the same thing to me. As they lay in bed, feeling like something the cat had dragged in, they wondered whether they were getting worse and might not see a new dawn, and had moments of revelation. They realised that living peacefully and in harmony with others mattered a lot. They reflected on their lives and visualised friends and precious family and how much those people meant to them. Even the less fortunate—people in want of the necessities of life assumed ascendant status in their consciousness. Everything else was of second and third priority. The focus was on things beyond the self. Don't wait until tomorrow to call Mum or sister or brother. Call them now and not put off for another day what is important to do today. Another said, saving for retirement was no longer only a means to secure his comfortable future. It would be to ensure that his dependents had a livelihood if anything happened to him.
They realised how transient their lives were. If human life had a purpose, then it would be our humane deeds because each of us is insignificant but our individual and collective actions have effects and are important in the universal scheme of things. Kindness to others, doing to others as we would have them do to us, preserving the natural environment, bringing up children to respect others, and having a moral compass give purpose to life. Those acts send positive energies into the universe.
One would wish that there could be changes in perspectives in what governance means, and the necessity to harness this small nation’s talent for the common good. Arrogance stifles creativity, and self-serving strategies like exploiting misfortune and using any means to achieve power, serve no useful purpose.
Indeed, as humans, we are only a tiny part of the universe of time and space, but all too often prove that we are the universe’ most dangerous virus. We all have roles in the puzzle of life, and distinctly so. Aspirations and dreams give purpose to our lives, and collectively striving to achieve broader goals, like vaccinating the population against a deadly disease signifies our understanding of interconnectedness. We often forget that we came into this world with nothing and will leave with an equal amount.
As the saying goes, "experience is the hardest teacher” in life. Mr COVID teaches that life changes without consent and in the quick fix of a vaccine jab.