Coronavirus – what is the world coming to?

One thing is for sure, the world will never be the same again.

I did not think I would live to see the day when huge swathes of the population begged our Beloved Leader to put us into lockdown, to keep us in our homes, to deny us our basic freedom. And now that everyone is confined to barracks, as it were, there will be more pressure on the internet – the kids who are not at school will want to watch movies or play games on their computers; parents may be working from home and needing to do research, file reports or attend conference-call type meetings. What we need is 5G! Please let us have 5G! We need it now!
Who knows what can be done while we are all safely tucked up in our homes and the streets are empty?
People no longer have to go to work – is this just a ploy to bring in robots?

Nobody knows what is really behind all of this – well, someone, somewhere does, no doubt – but I have a feeling that this is just the start of a turbulent year. Just because a pandemic is sweeping the globe, it does not mean natural disasters will stop – already we have seen an earthquake in Zagreb, Croatia, a city in lockdown, and I feel there will be more.

We are seeing the worst in people – greed; selfishness; the “I’m alright Jack” attitude – and also the best, as communities come together to help those in need, the sick, the vulnerable.
Even as hospitals are being broken into and vital supplies of masks, sanitiser and toilet rolls are being stolen, so people are taking supplies of food to local hospitals to keep the emergency workers going.

As “non-essential” shops close their doors, people might realise that they don’t need so much “stuff”; that there is more to life than wandering aimlessly around a shopping centre. As sports events are cancelled, fans must find other outlets for that energy.

What happens when all of these distractions are taken away? We have time to stop. In fact, we have to stop. Perhaps we have to come to terms with who we really are – and that can be scary for those who have shied away from doing that. Expect more domestic abuse, as cracks appear in relationships in the pressure cooker of a confined space.
Expect more mental health issues, perhaps even more suicides if the pressure becomes too much.
Expect, too, more creativity as people return to hobbies of childhood, the art or writing or music that had to be put aside for the sake of a career.
It will be interesting to see if there is a spike in births – or will people be too concerned about the future to create new life?

Meanwhile, without the high levels of regular pollution in the environment, the air is getting cleaner; people can hear birds singing where before they only heard traffic noise; they have time to see what is around them.

Nobody knows where this will all end, but one thing is certain – the world will never be the same again.

 

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