The Virus and The Monster

There's a virus in the air. That's not news. Most of the world is at standstill and the Prime Minister just announced a lockdown in London. COVID-19 has people in an array of emotions. I've seen fear, I feel anxiety and I've heard anger. There's nothing new I will type but I do want to touch on the monster that lurks amidst the panic.

Initially I thought the dark beast that roamed amongst us was greed. I thought people were being greedy and ignoring everyone else around them. While I still think greed is here with us, I don't think it's the actual monster we are living with. The real monster is the one that lives in us - and we live in it. The real monster is fear - and fear is driving us to do wild things.

There's a monster out there that's hurting humanity. It's the monster within. The one that's making us hoard, the one that's making us push, the one that's making us yell and do things that are far from our everyday character.

Videos are emerging of people fighting in stores, people running and flocking and stocking. The other day, a friend shared a tale on twitter:

If you check the follow-up conversation, you'll see that he's doing good and well stocked up. However, it opened up a lot of a discussion - or at least one with myself. How far are we gonna go? Shops have said they still have stock, and they're good to supply us, and given the lockdown announced yesterday - I get where why people are acting this way, but I don't know how long this will last and how far we'll go.

So long as we are afraid, and we have every reason to be, we will act wilder than naturally. I'm not here to tell you it'll all be okay. I no no more than the scientists, the doctors, the world leaders and the reddit threads. I do however, know what it means to be human. So for every action of fear, I must remember that someone out there is scared like me, but less able to act/react the way I am. I must be careful in what I say, mindful in what buy, helpful in how I shop and more.

Of what point is survival if no one else makes it? Or if everyone one who makes it has a higher drive of evil? It feels like survival of the fittest, but it doesn't have to be. Everyone deserves to live through this, and I must ensure that nothing I do inadvertently affects someone's life.

Let's take care of ourselves as well as we can, but not that the detriment of others.