Op-Ed: Compassion
As the pandamic continues to shut down certain sectors of the economy, as we continue to live our lives in total inconvenience and everything are closed, we come to realize that we are not meant to just stay in our homes. We are all social beings, and that means we are functioning in a society in a systematic way. The ecosystem has never been more disrupted. Relationships have been hampered. And to some, going outside is lonely.
Isolation has become a norm in a situation where we need the support of our families, the laughter of our friends, and the diversion of our workplaces. As we are forced to confine ourselves in our homes and work from home has been allowed by certain employers, we come to realize of the social implications of mismanaging epidemiology that has become a tool of a global warfare.
As days reel in an anticipation for solving this crisis, it has diverted our attention to something else, as well. For some of us, the environment has become more lonely. We cannot hug our loved ones to show them our affection. Social distancing has become very absurd that people cannot closely talk to each other anymore.
Amid all these, the refuge of some people is to pray for their safety. Yet, the churches are closed too. Masses are being held with no congregation, while the faithfuls watch the proceedings on the internet. It may sound like the same thing, but it is not. The celebration of the Eucharist is a personal thing, and it is in the partaking of the bread that we fully share in Christ's presence. Although for now, spiritual communion will suffice.
Now, there is a talk of a new normal that suggests social distancing as a matter of policy. For a second, this thought seems plausible as we emerge from strict community quarantine. But what the coronavirus has brought to the social prism is destroying relationships, robbing the working class of their dignity by denying them their daily wages, and a person's pursuit of himself by curtailing his own freedom of movement.
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This Op-Ed is sponsored by Gold's Gym.
Isolation has become a norm in a situation where we need the support of our families, the laughter of our friends, and the diversion of our workplaces. As we are forced to confine ourselves in our homes and work from home has been allowed by certain employers, we come to realize of the social implications of mismanaging epidemiology that has become a tool of a global warfare.
As days reel in an anticipation for solving this crisis, it has diverted our attention to something else, as well. For some of us, the environment has become more lonely. We cannot hug our loved ones to show them our affection. Social distancing has become very absurd that people cannot closely talk to each other anymore.
Amid all these, the refuge of some people is to pray for their safety. Yet, the churches are closed too. Masses are being held with no congregation, while the faithfuls watch the proceedings on the internet. It may sound like the same thing, but it is not. The celebration of the Eucharist is a personal thing, and it is in the partaking of the bread that we fully share in Christ's presence. Although for now, spiritual communion will suffice.
Now, there is a talk of a new normal that suggests social distancing as a matter of policy. For a second, this thought seems plausible as we emerge from strict community quarantine. But what the coronavirus has brought to the social prism is destroying relationships, robbing the working class of their dignity by denying them their daily wages, and a person's pursuit of himself by curtailing his own freedom of movement.
x----x
This Op-Ed is sponsored by Gold's Gym.
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