I recall reading The Maze Runner, set in a dystopian world affected by a virus very similar to COVID except it turned infected people into savages, and there was no hope for a cure. Of course it’s all fiction, but it got me thinking about the impending extinction of our species by viruses and other factors like, global warming, rising water levels (if you’re planning to buy a nice condo near the beach in the future, I’ll ask you to think again), and other environmental issues that are too many to be listed here, all happening in the forthcoming years. Gen Z and Gen Alpha will not be leading easy lives, I can tell you that.

Bringing ourselves back to the present, where the behemoth known as COVID has, out of the blue, plopped itself into our lives, we quickly learnt to adapt to the new reality because who knew how long this pest of a virus would stay. We hoped life would return to normal in a matter of weeks. Maybe months. Or maybe years. But we soon realized there was going to be a new normal, consisting of sanitizers, facemasks, social distancing, and whatnot. Slowly, days started blurring in together, distances to offices and classrooms were measured in meters not kilometres, the desperate need to digitally document every loaf of bread baked on social media took over, the anxiety of not being able to meet friends and relatives made us restless, the acceptance of handshakes and hugs being banned, depression and loneliness becoming disorders, really took a severe toll on all of us.

This was the life of all those privileged. The less fortunate struggled to put bread on their tables, waited in long queues for meagre rations of food, water, clothes, proper shelter, and toiled to pay hospital bills. The pandemic has become the main reason for poverty, and those already poor, were pushed deeper into the black hole of destituteness, with no hope of climbing back out. I think of COVID and every other imminent virus as a reminder for humans to stop and take a break from their busy lives and look around. Reminding them to spend time with their family, reconnect with old friends and relatives, and check on the earth once in a while. So, whatever it takes, we need to look for new ways to stay positive in such tough times so we’re mentally prepared beforehand for such pandemics, be it a rainbow, a puppy, a blue sky, family or friends that make us happy. After all, we are humans. We fight, we learn, we overcome.