It’s hard to escape the confusion surrounding Covid-19 and the global pandemonium that has ensued. We have all suddenly and with little warning been hurled onto a giant life raft and survival is finally at the forefronts of our minds. Any hope of sailing through the first half of 2020 with gay abandon seems a distant and foolhardy memory.

While the seasonal snivelly cough, used to be the battle-cry of spring, covid-19 has usurped the humble cough to mean the early onset of potential death. Never have I tried so hard to hold in a cough in all my life, as people suspiciously swap seats on the underground?

Londoners have lost the plot, queuing for hand sanitiser, pasta, toilet roll and bottled water. Sharing has gone out the window, in an every-man-for-himself apocalyptic surge. Supermarket shelves have been decimated, £200 billion has so far, been wiped of the FTSE blue-chip index and any hope of buying certain basic medical supplies?…Oops too late!

Eye opening, has been evidence that the debt-based financial system, that market strategists have encouraged globally for generations, has proved so fragile; resulting in thousands of bankrupt companies, at the first real threat of a viral plague. Bankrupted airlines have left passengers stranded and tens of thousands of retail and leisure and tourism staff are now out of work. Rent? What rent?

While governments around the World seek to allay fears by constantly filtering news of more deaths (#NOT) the fear of being in crowds of more than 25 in the USA or 500 the UK, has shown little unity in communication and still very little understanding of any plan of action.

Wuhan Province (China) where the outbreak began, has been contained due to concentrated human testing and a blanket ban on movement. Air around the affected areas is visibly clearing, (from space station images released by the press) and it’s easy to see how our slower pace has started to have a positive impact on the planet.

One thing that has sprung up out of all the hysteria, is our sense of community. Helping your fellow man in the supermarket may be tenuous but your neighbour, colleges, friend, reaching out to long lost or distant relatives seems somehow stabilising. Those we haven’t seen for some time have suddenly become relevant to our lives again and our sense of self has without a doubt shifted, to consider who and what the meaning of life is to each and every one of us.

While thousands continue to die across Europe, this global catastrophe has put daily life into perspective. Right now it feels like we are all on Titanic, a historical vessel that capsized drowning men, women and children indiscriminately, in the frozen seas of 1912. No amount of money will save us but if we share what little we have and remember how fleeting life is, we may just come out of this the other side, with dreams in our hearts and courage in our hands. In the midst of it all please stay safe and for goodness sake remember to wash your hands!

BBC Coronavirus; What it does to the body

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-51214864

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