Do as I say, not as I do

in data


Research showed that the coronavirus has affected people differently depending on their social status. Some might even seem to think that with political power also comes immunity.

We survived. We gave up our dinner tables to build a home office out of nowhere. We stopped seeing friends, family and strangers. We frantically hoarded food to avoid going to the supermarket too often. We anxiously called our older relatives, each time grateful to still be hearing their voices. We mailed postcards, handwritten letters and packages to people we couldn’t physically see. We sang in front of our computers, we sweat in our living rooms, we got drunk by ourselves. 

 

We got to know our vulnerable neighbours by bringing them groceries as they couldn’t shop themselves. We accepted the help of strangers, because there was no other option. We became teachers, nurses, cooks, fitness trainers, gardeners and psychologists. We saved lives, working impossible shifts in rearranged hospitals. We put our lives at risk to ensure other people’s needs were met. We stood in long lines, just to get a bag of free groceries, because we didn’t have any money left to buy food.

 

We picked up running because it seemed to be the only way to exhale all the tension we were building up. We followed the government’s press conferences like a gripping tv series, each time wondering what the plot twist would be. We stayed put, letting weeks go by, waiting and hoping that our efforts would mean something. We did our very best, in our simple way, to help the community. If we're here today, it's because we survived.

 

And now? Now they tell us that it’s not over, that the virus is still out there. They tell us to go back to the cinema, but only by following safety measures. They tell us to sit back in our favourite restaurant, with a few loved ones, but to please leave your personal data behind. Jump on that train, wear a mask, keep your Bluetooth on. Wash your hands, keep your distance from other people. Be safe, but be free. 

 

And then here they are, our leaders, those we looked up to for these past few months, those who decided what our lives would look like, those who closed and allowed for the sake of us all. Here they are, meeting other foreign leaders, celebrating the reopening of the borders, awarding medals, exchanging flowers.

 

Here they are, not wearing a mask, not keeping their distance, not being quarantined for entering a country that’s imposing one on tourists. So what now? To wear a mask or not to wear a mask? To keep off people or not to keep off? You tell us. But then practice what you preach.




Thumbnail picture credit: Anastasia Gepp from Pixabay.

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