Is It Insensitive If We Search for a Silver Lining in This Pandemic?
That there is more to life than ego, anger, resentment, hatred, envy, and jealousy — being alive
Amidst all this chaos, it is excellent that humanity is standing beside each other. Just in a matter of a few months, the world has experienced something we never dreamt of happening in real. Sure, we saw countless movies and series on Apocalypse or a virus that becomes a threat to humanity, but it never occurred to us; this could become a reality one day.
The country I live in, India, is on the verge of shut down. People have started working from home and have stocked up their homes with necessary items to survive in the coming days, weeks, or longer. People are in a frenzy; people are in a panic. Nobody knows what to say.
Could there be a possible silver lining in this?
Not really, if we see the statistics or data. Hard hit countries like China, Iran, and Italy know the impact of this pandemic well enough to suggest a silver lining.
But since we all are working from home, locked up, with our families — we might have a lot of time at our disposal to think about it.
Some people might say it is a way that God has chosen to punish humans for their sins, for the exploitation of fellow species, and earth. One could say this might be the reason only the cruelest of all the species, humans, are affected by it. Or, it could be a way, God is trying to save this earth, by slowing down, rather— shutting down the harmful activities of industries and the chemicals exerted by them.
Whatever be the spiritual argument of the matter, one outcome is for sure — we as humans are forced to retrospect — Of our past as an individual and as a species. We are reminded of the transience of life and the frailty of human beings as a race. We are actually, at the disposal of nature and it can show us our place, anytime it wants — though mostly like a mother, it rarely goes to such lengths.
It is time for us to give up our future ambitions, and past regrets, and focus on the present, because somehow we know, it is all we have. Nobody knows what is in store for the future. Major powers of the world are reminded how the biggest of their weapons, and the most lethal guns, cannot defeat this enemy. That all the progress they might have made economically, is not sufficient enough. That there is still a long way to go. It might have taught them humility. It might have taught us all humility.
We can think of how we were arguing for petty things, with strangers, and with loved ones, and reminded us how it all is pointless, after all. That there is more to life than ego, anger, resentment, hatred, envy, jealousy.
Maybe it is a perfect opportunity for a distant couple to reconsider their divorce. Being locked up in the same house is providing them a safe environment to focus just on the two of them, cutting all the external noises. Maybe, it is time for a sibling to rebound with the long lost bond when the other one left home to study at a college. Perhaps, just maybe, it is a time to reflect on what is, after all, most important for all of us as a race.
Yes, we stand together, united. In this chaos, uncertainty, panic, and frenzy, we stand beside our fellow human beings. This is the ultimate test to ensure humans, after all, are humans. I hope, and I pray we pass this test, with flying colors. That we become grateful for being alive, as once our ancestors were. We become just a bit more thankful for the gift of life. That the day the storm has finally settled, with birds chirping and streets bustling, we never forget how we are just a tiny bit part of this great planet.
