The Covid Lesson

(picture courtesy : Google images)

Nature never did betray the heart that loved her.

Nature has its own way of maintaining balance which is not very pleasant at times. For those learned men in suits and pragmatic pundits who claimed that climate change isn't real, I believe we have greater perils at hand.

We are moved beyond words seeing those coffins of Corona virus victims laid on the floor of a hall in Italy. And the trail of coffins holding those faithful departed don't seem to end.

Heartbreaking isn't it?

But we weren't much concerned when live animals were stuffed inside claustrophobic cages stacked one upon another endlessly in the wet markets. Some of these animals fell sick and died, their excrements and other bodily fluids passed on to the animals caged in the lower stacks, infecting them in the process.

Such scenes are not just confined to a particular country. I have woken up to mornings to witness on the street some 20-30 odd broiler chickens tied to the handle bar of the cycle of a supplier pedalling off to his vendor. The cries of the chickens weren't very 'good-morning' type.

Here we are now.

Locked inside our own houses on a Sunday afternoon. Our fingers fidgeting upon our mobile phone screens to get the latest count on the number of positive cases. It's not Netflix, but a mild sore throat and an occasional cough at night which is giving us the "chills". We are concerned about our loved ones; we are eyeing strangers in a public place with suspicion.

Meanwhile, dolphins are being spotted on the coasts of Italy, swans in the canals, otters roaming in public places of Singapore and penguins visiting an aquarium in Chicago.

We have done grave wrongs. nCOVID -19 pandemic is our wake-up call. It is calling us for course-correction. For nature never did betray the heart that loved her.

Heartfelt condolences to the victims and more power to the people on the ground fighting this.

Stay safe everyone.