This blog began when the pandemic was barely underway, but it’s now almost the middle of April and I’ve had a chance to absorb the immensity of it and observe some remarkable things.
I think the most important thing I/we can learn from this pandemic is to remember what we learn while we are in crisis. We are learning how crucially interdependent we are, as family, neighbors, strangers, communities, a nation, and as inhabitants of the Earth. We pass by each other as we walk to class, drive through our neighborhoods, or wait for our dentist appointment, totally unconcerned about one another, as if we have nothing in common. With so many positive things to share, it’s taken this nightmare to get us to pay attention to one another. I’ve found that after living in my home for sixteen years, in just two short weeks I’ve gotten to know several wonderful neighbors who I hadn’t taken the time to really talk to, other than a wave or a meaningless “hello” under my breath.. They were faces I didn’t give a second thought to because there was always something more important…like shopping, purchasing clothes made by children in sweat shops in third world countries or watching more CNN to reaffirm the multitude of reasons I hate our president. When it comes to health, our cultural response is interesting and not at all surprising. Some people wear masks, some throw them in the gutter, some people make a point to keep a safe distance, while others have nearly run me over in their cars when I walk. There is no typical response, only the sad truth that many people have acted as if this is just something happening to ‘those other people’ and simply another political issue that doesn’t involve them. I’m deeply saddened when people express anger at the possibility of illegals getting what they call “a handout.” Before I ask them if they would like to trade places with them, or attempt to explain to them that although social security is taken from their checks they will never receive any benefits, I stop myself, knowing it’s pointless. The economy may recover, but I fear the majority of people will never choose to see what they don’t want to see.
I hope we can use this experience to face the reality of climate change, to fear it enough to act. Scientists have been telling us for years that if we wait for the obvious impact of climate change it will already be too late. Unfortunately, scientists don’t make laws. No, too often they are made by the millionaires and billionaires that can buy political offices that further their own agendas and keep them in power. The media business is concerned with the almighty dollar, and the topic of climate change doesn’t lend itself will to being hyped up to compete with reality shows full of sex, vulgarity, and AK47’s. It’s a hard sell, and that’s reflected in the lack of documentaries warning us of what is to come. But here and now we have this true reality show happening all around us and people already talk of being bored with all the corona virus media! You can choose to watch the channels that tell you it’s all a political hoax, watch those that stick to scientific and medical facts, or even those that tell you it’s God’s plan. Take a seat, buy some popcorn, and tune in wherever you wish. But when the show is over, get your head out of the sand and take responsibility for the destruction we’ve caused and the crappy earth we’re leaving for our youth.
We speak of getting back to ‘normal’ as if normal was our best. It wasn’t! I don’t want to see us to go back to our arrogant and egocentric illusion that we are invincible and that our country is 100% better than others. We can appreciate to the progress we make here in the US, but we must look to what other countries do better and be humble enough to ask countries like Finland, “How do you structure your educational system such that your children read on level and learn to become thinkers?” Let’s look at countries with less violence and fewer weapons of mass destruction, like Canada, and ask their experts, “Exactly how do you do it?” We can refuse to buy products mass produced in foreign sweat shops, Like Ivanka Trump’s clothing line and Nike shoes.
We can learn to be more like Dr. Rieux who, when asked about being a hero said, “The only way to fight the plague is with decency.” I think decency comes with a spatter of humility and the understanding that being one among many, just doing our job to the best of our ability is of value. This isn’t to say we should be like cattle and quietly follow the herd. It means acknowledging that our individual value, if we choose it to be, is part of a greater function, and that each of us has a responsibility to do our part. It means being there for our neighbor, using common courtesy in our everyday interactions, and taking the time to find out if the quiet guy in class or in gathering is OK, and then actually doing something about it. Camus said that, “Life is a hospice, never a hospital.” Our job is to comfort and take care of each other as we travel our individual journeys that will all ultimately end with death. Hospitals function to temporarily prolong death, perhaps allowing us to continue our journeys a bit longer.
Even when this pandemic becomes temporarily controlled, the doctors are warning us that it will surely revisit us. As Camus said, “A pestilence isn’t a thing made to a man’s measure.” We believe we and control everything, until we can’t. We’ve been warned about climate change for years but is is blatantly ignored by politicians like Trump, and conveniently ignored by millions of consumers who eat their steaks and burgers, drawn in by ads showing bikini clad models sitting on hot sports cars eating juicy hot dripping burgers as if they are fondling their lovers. We can’t, as did the villagers in the Plague, “forget to be modest… they went on doing business, arranged for journeys, and formed views.” We must change our behavior, but I fear we won’t. We tend to climb back into our comfortable isolation and forget. It’s kind of like going to a funeral and telling ourselves on the way home to remember to live each day as if it were our last. Before we’ve pulled into the garage, we’re already making judgements about why so and so didn’t go to the funeral, or why that lady had the nerve to wear a bright colored dress. There is always something or someone else to blame.
There are a couple of quotes from Camus’ story about a plague that spoke to me: He said, “Suffering is randomly distributed, it makes no sense, it is simple absurd.” But what we are finding is that it is not randomly distributed. Blacks are disproportionately dying due to health disparities including lack of adequate health care, living in more densely populated areas, and doing jobs such as janitors and bus drivers which put them in close contact with people. And we won’t know until much later about all the deaths occurring in migrant camps and trashy little cramped slums. They won’t all have joyful outcomes that we see publicized like that of Tom Hanks and his wife. So, perhaps its randomness is not necessarily a kind thing. I also loved his quote, “Being alive always was and will always remain an emergency.” At any given time a natural event can wipe us out, that threat never ends. I have three close friends in different stages of breast cancer that has metastasized who are a constant reminder that it’s ridiculous to expect life to be fair. It just is what it is.
I read an article that talked of Camus addressing the connections between physical and psychological infection which made a reference to Nazi Germany and it brought a real fear to light. It spoke of the he same irreparable damage caused by a plague or pandemic also being caused by the ideology of an unleashed leader such as ours, who spews hate and lies while encouraging war among races and economic levels. THIS IS OUR PLAGUE.
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