Holding a societal umbrella in a downpour

Image: Photo with thanks to Tore F on Unsplash.

While the government is working on much needed economic responses to the COVID-19 crisis in Australia, the health responses don’t seem to be so evident.

Many of us have experienced personal disruption or are in touch with family members and friends who have lost loved ones, jobs, holidays, entertainment and sport. Social media extends our circle of friendship and has put us in touch with the global grief which is relentless and heavy to bear.

Living in a state or suburb where restriction on movement have been tightened or people have been put into complete lockdown is severely impacting the wellbeing of many. One person said, “This feeling of going back into lockdown is really doing my head in.”

When we realise that we have not experienced anything like this before and we have no idea when the end will come, this adds to the heaviness of the burdens we bear.

While we’ve been reminded that Isaac Newton invented calculus in his lockdown during the Great Plague of the 1660s and Shakespeare wrote King Lear and other gems while in quarantine, most of us admit to a draining of our creativity and experiencing an immense tiredness.

Even if we are careful to keep our social distance on our walk around the park, it’s frustrating when others walk two abreast, either forgetting or ignoring COVID safety protocols. On such occasions we realise that we are carrying the weight of others. As one person has put it, “We’re holding a societal umbrella in a downpour; they’re laughing and pretending it’s not raining because they’re not wet. It’s exhausting.”

Mahatma Gandhi once said, “If I have learned any lesson from the life of Jesus it is that one should share and lighten the load of those who are heavily laden.”

Whether people are careful or careless, sharing the load and holding the umbrella for others seems to be an essential COVID calling.

Geoff Pound