Advertisement
Published: April 2nd 2020
Covid-19
We need to dance and look beyond the storm!An interesting quote to say the least and it somehow resonates with the current nightmare scenario confronting mankind. There is a monumental and frightening storm raging with no early signs of abating, but whilst we fervently wait and hope that Covid-19 will eventually blow out, we still need to figure out how to make the most of a frightening situation beyond our immediate control.
Huge numbers of humans around the World, myself included, ponder daily on what will happen next as we watch in horror at the relentless onslaught of this virus which simply has not played by any rational rule book. Each day there are chilling updates via multiple media channels of increased positive cases in numerous countries and a death rate which is climbing to levels which are simply scary. We do not have a clue as to what is around the next bend or what will arrive tomorrow!
There is a feeling of resignation, bordering on hopelessness. Have we lost our ability to foresee the future?
Covid-19
A 180m jog times 10 laps. Not quite a standard marathon but still essential exercise. Are we in control of the situation? But here is an indisputable fact:
as smart as we may think we are, mankind has never had a clue as to what the future has in store. Never had, never will. Enter Covid-19. Not predicted in our illusionary view of the future and we seemingly have no control over its impact as witnessed in just some of the current aftermath:
1. Markets crashing and economies going into steep nosedives. Recession looming for the Global economy.
2. Entire countries shutting down. Massive knock on effect. Unemployment spiking. Starvation threatens Africa.
3. Our own country being hammered with downgrades in the midst of this maelstrom. The Rand getting clubbed like a helpless seal against major currencies.
As tough as it may appear, there is nothing we can do about Covid-19 other than limit it’s spread and impact and hope that this will lessen the catastrophic impact it could very well have by the time the storm stops raging. What will be, will be. So, if one can hard wire to this thought process then it makes it a little easier not to get overwhelmed by the massive onslaught of
Covid-19
An April fools birthday but nothing like the devotion of Olivia who made these cupcakes and special birthday gift. information swirling around Covid-19. Simply put, we have no control, we are powerless and inevitably, we are vulnerable.
If we could all somehow accept that “it is what it is” and provided we play by our hastily invented rules to contain this scourge, then maybe there is a script containing a sense of peace and comfort that offsets our huge anxiety levels.
Probably one of our bigger, immediate challenges has been how to adjust to the daily speedometer of normal life re-calibrating from super-fast to super slow! This must be a nightmare scenario for the Millennial's (born 1981 to 1996) who have led frenetically fast paced lives chasing careers, lifestyles, many illusive ghosts and then bang, a wall and a screeching halt! Just maybe a positive outcome is that many people rethink what they desire in their future lifestyles and reboot accordingly once the Covid-19 dust settles. After all, we thrive and survive on our interactions with fellow humans.
But in the midst of all that is happening, it is vitally important that
we learn to dance in the rain. The daily dance undertaken globally will be vastly different by household and given that this rambling story is being penned on Day 7 of our lock down here in South Africa, what is fascinating in our humble household is how quickly we have adapted to a new stream of daily activities. A quick overview:
1. Exercise A walking or jogging route of 180m (genuine, thanks to Garmin) has been mapped out within our property boundary. Daily walks and jogging take place. Our seven-year-old grand-daughter does an exercise routine daily off a Facebook link. Sue is a regular at Liquid Lines Aqua classes in Cape St Francis and their coach streams out a fitness routine daily. Messages on social media suggest some of the Aqua class struggle to get off the floor after strenuous exercise. The important message in all this is that millions will have adapted and will be doing exercise despite being housebound. Some for the first time. It’s a case of “use it or lose it” as inactivity is not good at all.
2. Entertainment With our great climate in this country, no need to sit all day glued in front of TV or computer screens but when you need it, there is loads of entertainment on tap. But get this! All of a sudden, we are on a journey of discovery aided and abetted by technology. So, we have discovered via
YouTube that you can join a morning and evening game drive in the Kruger National Park. I kid you not! Our daily family
WhatsApp conference call is now beamed onto our smart TV screen. This based on downloading an App called
Screen Mirroring Assistant. What we all need to do is "virtually" reach out to others in our circles. On a lighter note, being an April Fool birthday boy generally means I get a few more birthday wishes than I guess would normally be the case. But Covid-19 changed that dramatically and the spike in the number of greetings this time around was not unlike the exponential rise in virus infections seen to date. Simple reason. Many, many people looking at gadgets with time on their hands. OK. Let's send that poor bugger a birthday message!
St Francis Bay has more bridge players per capita than any town on Earth. There wasn’t a day in the week without one or other bridge group in action. So, lock down has been a calamity for the bridge clan but not for long. Groups have sprung up and many games are played daily on the internet. Only those who have not embraced technology are at an empty table. And then there is a thing called
Netflix. There is no end to what you can select and watch. If you haven’t done so watch:
·
Deadwind ·
The Valhalla Murders Both of these filmed in the frigid wastes of Finland and Iceland. A convincing message to not ever go and live there! And then if one has the travel bug (I’ve tested positive),
traveller24 can take you on short scenic trips to almost anywhere beyond one’s imagination.
Bottom line. There is no possible way to get seriously bored.
3. Culinary delights Time means doing a lot of things one normally wouldn’t do. For example, cooking. All those cook books and cooking ideas which have been lurking in the back of our minds and avoided because “just don’t have time” or “will do tomorrow.” Game changer moment and each evening a meal is prepared with a bit more due diligence and thought and Jamie Oliver’s “Comfy Sausage Bake” gets the taste buds dancing and is way more enticing than fried porkies and whatever! Often a key ingredient is missing and a quick dash to the Spar is not an option. So, a think out the box moment and improvisation will keep the recipe on the rails. A little gem of a dish prepared after watching
Masterchef was a Spanish Chicken Stew. Have a peek at the recipe on
www.lovefoodnourish.com. It is really good and takes chicken to a new level.
4. Matters financial This is the least fun part of confronting the daily Covid-19 reality. Markets in free fall one day and then spiking back upwards the next. Topsy turvy and driven by one fundamental factor. Fear! Carefully laid financial plans over many years have been turned upside down in a matter of weeks. There is no magic quick fix at times like these other than to take a view that “this too, shall pass” and rather than panic, we need to breath deeply and take a longer-term view. Easier said than done, but now is not the time to abandon those long-term plans.
No doubt there are many households doing a whole lot more with their time than we are but it is intriguing to confront each day knowing that there are no external factors that will impinge on the most incredibly important factor in all of our lives and that is simply; time!
Suddenly time is there in bucket loads to:
· Get the housework done. For many, a whole new experience.
· Tackle those gardening projects.
· Clean out cupboards and discover stuff that you didn’t even know you owned.
· Read books that have piled up over time.
· Fix things that have been on the “to do” list for ever.
Covid-19 will change the World we knew beyond our comprehension.
And adding to that is the growing conspiracy aspects to this virus. Is it all that it appears to be?
Advertisement
Tot: 0.3s; Tpl: 0.014s; cc: 10; qc: 46; dbt: 0.1293s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb
Stephen Bekker
non-member comment
Thanks Tim. Always a good read. Some scary, worrying times but thanks for the positive spin and ideas. For some of us there is still work to do, but when work dries up things will take an even more drastic turn.