Fernando: Surviving

I WROTE last Thursday that the cases of those infected with the virus were rising. I was hoping that this number would fall this week but it seems that that the night is still long. The other day we recorded more than 500 cases in a day, the highest record in the country since the outbreak. We are stuck in our houses and there is not much in our heads but the thought to survive these difficult months hoping that the light after this long tunnel is just right ahead of us.

Never mind the meaning of life now though it speaks of many a deep and complex implication. People keep thinking of what they will have in the next meal or where they will get food. Time is mostly spent in front of our televisions and cell phones. Sad thing is, this is not mostly our choice but this is seen as the best way to ignore the ticking of the clock. Most are glued to their cellphones, either checking their social accounts or playing with mobile games. This has become the norm and parents cannot complain because there is not much to do. Better than go out.

Those who have sufficient income and savings have only boredom to fight but the majority of us are fighting the biggest challenge of our lives-survival. Many are helpless. They rely on the government’s works of justice and compassion. The president has promised aids through relief goods and financial assistance. This can hugely help ease the problem of surviving. We hope that those who need most of these aids are provided. There are social media posts about officials picking who they want to give relief goods. Some of these posts may be exaggerated but numerous of them I believe must be given proper attention by the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) because they are true. They cannot complain directly to our officials because of the lack of courage. If it is their fault to lack courage may it not be the reason not to be supplied with relief goods.

Too many ceremonies and events that provide meaning to our existence have been cancelled. Graduation ceremonies, the celebration of the Holy Eucharist, fiestas, and parties are no longer allowed. These events can cause emptiness in our existence because we are used to be part of them. Because it is our nature to socialize and as much as we can, to minimize the distance between us and others. Yet now we are commanded to take distance and separate. We are a social being and part of our existence now cannot adapt to this directive of social distancing because it is not part of our nature.

I love to walk my daughter to some parks like many of us on weekends, but like many of us, I cannot. She asks me if we could go to Burnham Park or Children’s Park. She likes to slide and swing. She also enjoys feeding the fish in the lake. I said, ‘there is a virus out there. There is a virus outside the house and we cannot go out.’ She used to say ‘okay’ but we will go out when there is no more virus. “Of course.” The children are deprived of social and physical development but I will not complain because the primary goal of existence today is survival. We only want their good health, good health for all of us.

The majority of the world experiences the same difficulty but it is more challenging to a country like us whose majority of its populace is poor. To survive is to make sure our fellows have something to eat during mealtime. To survive is to keep them away from the virus that can kill them and to recover the disease if the virus gets a hold on them. We are innately survivors but in these trying times, many of us are in dire need of help just to survive.

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