COVID: The “White” Swan Revealing Humanity’s Polarities

Out of the suffocated breaths of our beautiful planet, out of dense smoke clouds from factories, and toxic vehicle exhaust emissions, out of the gruesome exploitation of animals in markets and zoos, out of the adversity practiced by humans upon fellow humans – lack of meaningful family communications, greed, maltreatment, and strife for power, comes COVID! A type of coronaviruses, that has newly emerged, in 2019, causing mild cold symptoms that can extend to acute pneumonia. That is the simple definition. However, beneath the surface, it is much more! It is the cloud and the silver lining* at the same time!

This article is not about its causes, symptoms, or hidden agendas as claimed. We have been overwhelmed with news, incidents, analysis by all types of parties and media, humor, which also created self-pity, along with health advice and immunity drink recipes, and the most prevalent, the speculations about the cure, which until this day, is still under testing. With all these daily reports, news, and messages, humans suddenly were exposed to an extreme of our perception of the situation as catastrophic, which given the facts, the situation is indeed vicious... The first polarity.

This article is also not about inducing resentment. It is about what COVID revealed to us as human beings: doctors, scientists, governments, ministries, industries, educators, business owners, thinkers and philosophers, parents, and sons/daughters. Man has reached a stage when he thought he knew it all, misusing life’s resources, and his potential for true awareness. This is not to say that whatever is happening is punishment for such adversities, because in my humble opinion, life was never meant to do that. It is simply life’s normal cycles, ups and downs, ebbs and flows in our journey of life. Reading history, philosophy, and sciences shows patterns and repeated trends, over thousands and millions of years. With the mitigation procedures, such as closures and homestays, many families and individuals saw the other polarity, an extreme of our perception of the situation as an opportunity to rest, rewind, and recover... The second polarity.

COVID-19, stealthily striking the globe in the most unprecedented way, conquering its most intimate cores, our homes and families, has been the most controversial themes, if not the most dominant, since January of this year. The bright sun of April has arrived and COVID is still the wolf lurking behind the doors. However, as the doors of schools, shops, and homes closed, realizations floated to the top. We are experiencing a huge, thick cloud, but it does have a very shining silver lining!

Naturally, physical health is the first threatened by the virus, as people of almost all ages, especially the elders and the severely ill, are prone to catch easily. This virus is dramatically contagious. 1 in 5 people who catch coronavirus will need to go to the hospital for immediate intervention. Due to its 14-day incubation in the body before it shows any symptoms, it is considered one of the stealthiest diseases. That’s what caused the outbreak, and consequently, the request from governments to close schools and workplaces and stay at home, learning and working remotely. That was unprecedented and totally out of control. That’s what COVID-19 conveyed: Our health systems and habits are extremely vulnerable to the extent that we, 21st century humans and our technologies, cannot yet contain. Suddenly, governments announce health alerts and emergencies, as they discover the failure of the systems to handle the rocketing cases every single day. The shortage of ample nurses is a global concern at this time. That’s the first harsh truth that COVID unveiled. The most modern technologies, that systems bragged about all these years, prove helpless to stop the spreading of the disease. Governments are struggling to save their people’s lives.

That led to the second health issue threatened by this virus, which is the economic health. As people are obliged to stay home to reduce the outbreak, the infrastructure of the economy is incredibly shaken. The pipeline that drives the economy-corporations, schools, airports, and shops are suddenly closed. Institutions, including the education sector, that have been sketching plans at a slow, safe pace, suddenly found themselves obliged to respond even without preparations at the surge of the virus. Trials were quickly done to arrange remote working. Again, a world, which is viewing itself as “smart”, operating smart devices, bragging about robots, exploring space, and planning trips to Mars, has found itself paralyzed. Risk management in many governments and corporations is not evident, except in few countries around the world. There are already low-interest debt-based communities in the world, making the situation worse. Small businesses and farms are the most at risk. That’s the second harsh truth that COVID unveiled. Old paradigms of business skills, possibilities, and necessities must be reframed now, and preventive, precautionary measures must always be set.

Mental health is the third under COVID attack. The deteriorating health systems and the paralyzed economy have started to take their toll on our communities. We have always yearned for quiet, relieving days at home, when we do not have to wake up on alarm clocks or stay alert for tasks, calls, or meetings 7 to 8 hours a day. We have always wished that our vacations could last longer. However, now that we are officially requested to stay at home, serious issues have started to emerge. Having no choice of going out, home routines are not much pleasing to many people, and the seriousness is implied by the considerable cases of abuse, witnessed in many homes. The first month was seen as exciting, but as the stay is extended, there are questions about how stable family relationships are, mainly marital ones. Men and women losing jobs, salaries cut down, and the pressure of the new work media, remote working habits, are intensifying the situation.

However, the Debris?

During a 2015 TED talk, Bill Gates posed a question: “The Next Outbreak? and concludes that “We’re not Ready”, giving four suggestions. Regardless of different opinions about the motives of Bill Gates, we cannot deny that we were asked the same question by the universe itself: “Are we Ready?”

1. Lack of Awareness: This is very broad because it involves awareness. Awareness in its surface meaning involves the guidelines and advice provided by WHO and the ministries of health, such as basics about the virus, hygiene and respiratory etiquette, social distancing, and taking the right action upon positive diagnosis, along with myth busters. At a deeper level, awareness involves the understanding of all scenarios, recognizing fake news, clickbaits, and media scoops in social media. As people disregard the recommended safety measures and are easily driven to believe any piece of information that they read or hear, the crisis is escalating, both physically and cognitively.

2. Lack of Healthcare Readiness: Health sectors worldwide were overwhelmed by the outbreak. Nurses and doctors were greatly needed in enormous numbers and until today, the demand has not declined. Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director General State declared, „Nurses are the backbone of any health system. Today, many nurses find themselves on the frontline in the battle against Covid-19.This report is a stark reminder of the unique role they play, and a wakeup call to ensure they get the support they need to keep the world healthy.”

3. Fear-inducers: News and Media are playing a dangerous role in spreading fear around the globe for the sake of suspense and the satisfaction of certain parties. Unfortunately, the majority of people is shaken by fear of illness, loss of loved ones, loss of income, and loss of the familiar lifestyle that they have programmed their lives accordingly. As people are easily engaged by scenarios and plots, woven smartly to attract more social media views, the crisis is expanding emotionally.

4. Lack of Crisis Management: Although the concept of viruses dates back to centuries before, causing the death of millions of people and the loss of trillion dollars, breaking news cascaded with Coronavirus, leaving governments and communities puzzled in a very short period of time. Very few countries could handle the crisis at its early stages, making the right decisions at the right time. The lack of crisis management globally resulted in confusion, that intensified the above-mentioned points.

5. Shortage of Supplies: This is directly related to the lack of crisis management and the absence of supply network mapping. Big countries around the world had empty supermarket shelves due to panic-stricken people, who started massive purchasing of food and raw material, disrupting supply chains.

6. Cure Hunt: The stark truth is that until today COVID-19 has no cure or treatment. There are ongoing trials clinically by different countries, such as Germany, USA, China, and others. However, these will be taking time to be tested for validity, leaving all fields on hold until a formal declaration of a vaccine is issued.

7. Cybercrimes: Usually in times of confusion, scammers take advantage contacting people and pretending they are authority officials asking for sensitive information or sending malicious links.

8. Grudge Traps: Horrendous news, gossip through the social media, and interviews, analyzing scenarios within closed hospital doors, government offices, and health departments, created anxieities, that would easily trigger grudges against communities and the governing bodies. Treatment and care by age and social status has been another dominant theme, which as it threatens basic survival rights, adds turmoil to the collective consciousness.

So, we wrap up with fundamental questions:

Were we ready? No, we were not.

Is this virus out of the ordinary? It is, in terms of complexity, but, tracking human history of evolution, no, it is not.

But we have heard many voices speaking about viruses and different kinds of weapons. Whether this is one or simply a virus originating from wet markets, this does not change the fact that humans should have risk management plans.

Will this last forever? No, it will not.

Man has relatively survived past vriuses and he can survive COVID. We are oscillating between bad, frightening thoughts, and positive-reframing new paradigms. There is a natural cycle in nature itself: autumn, winter, then spring and summer; night and day; harvesting then planting. The intensity of the global situation now is the yet-cureless, highly contagious type of the virus, that has got out of control becoming a pandemic, with another “infodemic” growing every day.

We have no other choice but to embrace whatever is happening as part of our life cycle and evolution, carefully following health guidelines, being aware of the information we are receiving and circulating, and utilizing the time at home to build skills. For those whose businesses are at risk, working on ways to “virus-proof” them is a necessity now. “Hard times call for clever moves”, Douglas Kruger, Global speaker and business author states, as he writes in his new book about ways to save small businesses.

Despite the above 8 challenge points, we all agree on one universal feeling and one universal action step: feeling compassionate with all those on the front lines, those struggling to keep their breaths, and communities doing whatever it takes to reduce number of deaths and cases through social distancing.

We have no choice but to choose wisely what we hear, watch, and read. The earth is refreshing itself. The systems will be reframed. We are reflecting upon core themes in our lives.

See the silver lining. Choose the better perspective. Choose the positive polarity.

Stay Safe. Stay resilient. Stay smart.

* an advantage that comes from a difficult or unpleasant situation