Mr. COVID-19
Globalization means the world is a one village. We use this terminology very often to address a business phenomena which is being able to manufacture a product in China, for instance, and sell it in an abandoned store in the US. But is there a global health risk behind globalization? A virus that is infecting people in a one end of earth can also travel on planes or by ships to get to the other end in matter of hours and spread the infection. It travels without passports or tickets. So, how are we reacting to COVID-19?
As borders disappear, people and goods are increasingly free to move, creating new challenges to global health.
-Tikki Pang
What I found interesting this week is that most people started to take COVID-19 seriously and stayed at home, including myself. The process is strange at first, but the reward is worth it. When I think about leaving the house I recognize the danger of bringing the infection to my beloved ones at home- god forbids- and put my temptations aside happily.
I can say that the world is recognizing their flaws and how a tiny infectious agent, that can’t be seen by the naked eyes, can flip the world best economies in a matter of seconds. Moreover, it can also reveal who the true and loyal allies are. I saw a translated video delivered by the Serbian President couple of days ago. He was coming hard on the European Union for not helping his country in such times, while the far friend China is giving all the support instead, regardless of their history. He said, “ You come to realize that the great international solidarity does not exist. European solidarity does not exist! That was a fairytale on paper!”
The moral of his speech is that we need to watch what our allies are doing to us at the moment and take notes because the true ones are those who stand with you in times of crisis not only in times of peace. Tough times will tell you a lot about them, and also about your nemesis!
COVID-19 has been more than a teacher to us in many ways. It taught all mankind a valuable lesson, it’s called spending quality time with your family. We needed a tough lesson to learn to recognize and appreciate our blessings. I personally learned to appreciate a lot of things that were for me just a process or a routine more than blessings. One of those things is the barbershop. I lost my shaving touch since i got back to Saudi by the end of 2017. Since then, I started to shave at the barbershop for my convenience. So when I tried to trim my beard at home, I ended up with only a mustache and not a single hair left on my cheeks. 5 minutes later I’m already a sticker in my family’s Whatsapp group. Did it stop there? My 9 years old nephew asked me politely, “Hey uncle.. why your head is so tiny!” I assure you he got no candy from me that day! Long story short, now I can appreciate and recognize many things that were just some standards of living by default in the past. From now on I promise not to take my blessings for granted. Many of us by now have new plans already to do once this virus, or let’s call it the tough unmerciful teacher Mr. COVID-19, is over. I hope we all pass this crisis safe and sound with all of our beloved ones by our side. Thank you for reading till here!