Covid or “CO-VID” (let’s look at the silver lining)

Every cloud has a silver lining

I know that you are feeling a certain sense of fear, uncertainty, and panic. We can’t ignore the global havoc caused by the coronavirus pandemic nor deny the ongoing damage to our economies, our daily lives, our jobs, and above all to our people. These losses are real and everyone must acknowledge them. Having said that, we must learn to fixate on the brighter side as well otherwise we will get entangled in the vicious cycle of negativities and that will make us feel even worse. It’s cliché, I know, but that’s because it works. It is rightly said that “what you seek is seeking you” and I choose to seek the positive aspects during this crisis. If you try to dissect covid into two parts it becomes “CO-VID”, where “CO” means joint/together or mutual, and “VID” means “to see” in Latin, “to know” in Sanskrit and “Vida” means “life” in Spanish. So, from this perspective, you can see the “CO-VID” period as the time to live together, see together, and know together. This sense of togetherness is a healing touch for the human race in general. Let’s have a look at the list of good things that are happening amidst the calamity (YES! many good things are happening as well):

1. Humanity is getting evolved like never before: People are trying to help each other as much as possible. Many businesses are ready to provide free services to needy people. Countries are trying to help other countries by sharing information and resources even if they had not been allied in the past. They always say, it takes a common enemy to bring different groups together and we can see this happening in full force right now. For the first time in my lifetime, people are beginning to see themselves beyond their own lives and trying to be a part of something bigger. All the debates about racism and religious conflicts have suddenly stopped.
2. The environment is getting a break: Climate change seemed to be a huge concern for the whole world in the recent past. Now, many environmental scientists have reported that air pollution, noise pollution, and water pollution have decreased significantly. The CO2 level across the world appears to be falling. Dolphins are coming back to Venice’s canals. Malabar Civet, a critically endangered mammal, was seen for the first time since 1990 in Kerala, India. Nature is reassuring co-existence and sending us a signal that it is all about living in harmony with mother nature and thriving in agreement with the planet earth. Maybe, we can declare a global lockdown anniversary for a day or two in the coming years to remind us about our accountability and integrity towards mother nature.
3. Optimum use of available resources: We have become conscious about using resources at our homes during the lockdown. Societies are requesting people to use resources like water, electricity, gas, etc. in the optimum amount to avoid any scarcity especially when everyone is staying indoors. We are not spending money on non-essential items. If we take a positive lesson, we can save our resources from getting wasted in the future.
4. Increase in connectivity and creativity: People are trying to connect and spend more time with their friends, neighbors, family, and even distant relatives using digital technologies like zoom, skype, etc. Some people and businesses are trying to be more creative and innovative. Online meetings are happening. Students are being taught through virtual classrooms using interesting animations. Live gym sessions, events, and concerts are being organized which you can join at your own comfort while staying indoors. Some people are using this time to develop new hobbies and some are even drinking and partying together using virtual platforms.
5. Health and hygiene are becoming a priority: Governments have started investing more funds in health infrastructure which was a much-awaited necessity, particularly in some of the developing nations. People are developing conscious habits of cleanliness and personal hygiene. This would be beneficial in the long term in protecting us from various other diseases.

Conclusion: No matter how dire the situation is, we can always find some positives. It is our unwillingness to look at them, that blinds us to the brighter sides. No one is free from the prevailing conditions but everyone has a choice to take a stand regarding them. I will suggest one task to all the readers, where you have to note down one good thing happening in your personal life during this lockdown period on a sticky note and paste it on the wall of your living room or write down in your diary/notebook if the sticky note is unavailable right now. You have to make sure that you try your level best to make at least one good thing happen every day. Let’s do it religiously for a few days and try to notice the positive change in our perspectives and feelings. You may start feeling thankful for this quarantine time rather than feeling forced, helpless, and sad about it. Collective fear is courage and the whole world is fighting against this pandemic courageously and collectively. Good lessons learned during this tough time should remain with us for a better tomorrow. We will win this war against corona for sure but we must attach our emotions with positive vibes because every cloud has a silver lining.

Please share this article with your friends and family and stay positive.