Combatting the unseen enemy

THE EDITOR: Who would have thought our lives could change so drastically in the blink of an eye. A virus thousands of miles away in China, has spread like a wildfire under the blazing, tropical sun. An unseen enemy, spreading at the touch of a hand, a careless precaution not taken, a sneeze, a cough, a contaminated shoe trekking casually through the door.

Countries have been brought to their knees in recurring force. One after the other, we kneel to its power. It is a mini war, with an unseen enemy and we are all in it fighting. Every soldier counts, every action we take, every sacrifice we make can make the difference in the battlefield. Whether we succumb to it or not depends on the actions of everyone, not just a few in the frontline, for we are all now serving in the frontline.

The enemy is swift, highly contagious, spreads on everything, cannot be seen and can attack us only when we leave the safe confines of our self- isolation.

So what are the choices that we make now? Do we step outside to get that box of KFC or pop into the grocery to buy a few tins of peas? Is it a matter of life or death that we must have these things? Should we take a chance and emerge from our safe havens when we know the enemy is unseen, lurking, waiting for us, ready to pounce on us at any point in time?

It reminds us of the movies we have seen, except this time, we are the main stars in it. Do we take that one chance or understand our role now?

Can we begin to comprehend how interconnected we all are, that the reckless decisions of just one person can catapult us into catastrophe. That we have a dire social responsibility to do the right thing. To think of others. To be less reckless. To take no chances. To stay at home. To understand that our health care system could go into shambles. That a state of emergency is next. That our economic situation is fragile at best. That businesses are closing. Jobs are being lost. That people will die.

Make the choice.

Catherine Murphy

via e-mail