We're Powerless
COVID-19 is a virus. A virus so tiny, that it's not visible to the naked eye. But think about all the ways it has attacked us at both local and global levels. With over 6.15M infected and 372K deaths (as of 7.21 AM on 01/06/2020), we're going through the worst economic crisis since 1930s depression. Many factories are closed down, there are countless layoffs and salary cuts, the tourism industry is on hold, and so is every plan and resolution we had for this year.
It's a new world and order, so our usual lifestyles are not what it used to be. Every single task in our daily routine has to follow a number of health and safety precautions. Even the most powerful nations in the world have no choice but to follow them.
If there's anything that this proves, it's how powerless we are when there's a threat to our health. The world has deadly military weaponry that can wipe out entire populations just within a few seconds, but even they can't defend us from COVID-19. We have no cure in sight, which could take years to make, and until then, we've to succumb to a teeny tiny virus whenever it demands.
We're Not Poor, But Our Lifestyles Are Expensive
Sri Lanka was in a lockdown situation for almost 3 months, and that changed our spending patterns a lot. Everything we wanted wasn't within hand's reach, so we learnt how to settle for what's available, and realised that it's still fine and normal to live like that.
Those of us who spent thousands of rupees on a gym, started to work out at home after having a good walk/run in the neighbourhood. Instead of skipping homemade meals to have restaurant food, we started to polish up our cooking skills so we can make pretty much anything we like at home itself.
With the salary cuts and the risk of layoffs, we now have had a good hard look at our finances and realised how much we can save when we identify what expenses in our lifestyle are worth it and what is too much. We're not poor in terms of money, we're poor at its management.
Humans Don't Deserve This Planet
Image credits: dailypost.lk
It took only a few weeks of lockdown for the skies to clear, the grass to turn green and the wildlife to freely roam on the streets. In fact, the air pollution in Sri Lanka's urban areas was decreased by up to 75% during the lockdown, while plastic pollution and other forms of marine pollution were decreased by up to 40% along the island's coastline.
Many countries in the world reported similar scenarios, which says a lot. We have impurified mother nature with our greed and broken promises and this is nature's way of telling us how pretty and wonderful it'd be when humans aren't in it. We truly don't deserve this planet.
Self-sufficiency Matters
Lockdown brought a lot of attention to self-sufficiency too, especially growing your own food. A little bit of effort in your garden can help you eat fresh and healthy, while giving you many other mental advantages. It relieves your stress, lowers your blood pressure, and it's an activity that you can do with your family while strengthening your bond with them.
At the end of the day, it saves you money too.
Insta Lie
Social media is like a drug that we cannot pass the day without. Pretty much everything in our lives is documented there, from relationships and friendships to achievements and views about life. But how many of them are genuine?
You have many pictures on your feed captured on top of a hill somewhere or near a waterfall, but did you actually miss travelling during this quarantine? You post a picture of your BFF with #friendsforever, but when was the last time you spoke to him/her? You wish happy birthday to your partner on Facebook, but did you think of saying how much you love him/her in person when he/she was sitting right next to you? There are a whole bunch of inspirational quotes about hard work on your Instagram, but did you get any work done today?
They all are parts of an Insta Lie. We've been too busy faking our lives, and it took us a mandatory home-quarantine imposed due to a pandemic to touch the ground and realise the harsh truth.
Remote Working Is Doable
There are many employees and employers who were trying so hard to wrap their minds around the whole idea of working from home. From maintaining productivity to keeping up with the morale, now we've come to realise that it actually works.
The companies can earn the benefit of not having to pay rent and bills to keep an office space while most of the employees can carry out their work in a very relaxed manner. Given that there are many, many team/task management software, it's not hard for the managers to track the progress of a given task, deadlines, and they can stay connected with teams using any of the video/audio-based tools.
Even the biggest companies in the world, like Facebook and Google are already on board with the trend. So much so they have extended work-from-home option through the end of this year.
Life Is Short
And precious, which is all the more reasons why it should be cherished. From family to other relationships to favourite activities, this pandemic made us think of all the things we've taken for granted. We were too busy hunting down for money to the point we do conversions between money and time – time that could've been used to spend with a loved one or to relax and live a little somewhere on a sandy beach under the shimmering sky.
