Defeat or victory : The choice is ours

    30-Mar-2020
Moirangthem Dolly ([email protected])
“We are broken, that’s how the light gets in”- Ernest Hemingway. The world seems to loose its control. People everywhere talk about the deadly COVID-19. Everyone is panic-stricken thinking what if she/he might be the next victim. The crisis is not only the world vs COVID-19, but also, ignorance vs wisdom. The world seeks very hard to fight against the disease. In India, the Prime Minister has announced nation-wide lockdown of 21 days from 23rd March, 2020 till 14th April, 2020. But the question is if the governments, scientists, medical personnel are responsible enough to contain the spread of the disease. The answer is loud enough and it’s a ‘NO’. Public too play an important role here. Europe, in spite of its well-advanced scientific technology still fails to curb the contamination of the disease. Just imagine the fate of Manipur! It is utterly sad to learn that our people fail to comprehend the notion of ‘Lockdown’, which means to stay at home so that we do not become the targets of the merciless disease. Instead, in some parts of the state, people are seen being engaged themselves in parties, holding feasts, family-friends get-together, gambling, sitting in groups in every possible corner of the streets and localities, taking tea-breaks, gossiping, roaming and loitering here and there, going out for morning and evening walks, elders taking out their kids to playground, and what not! We become the undignified minds!
We elect our representatives and they become our voices. Is it not the time to listen to them and co-operate with them in handling the issue for our own safety? Press, Media, Government, Local bodies, Police Personnel, Medical Personnel play their roles unquestionably, and why do we fail to play ours? The question is not just one man’s safety but that for all. We should immediately stop spreading rumours on anything for they lead to unwanted situations and unnecessary panic. The guidelines regarding the curbing of the disease should be strictly followed. It is a test on humanitarianism. How far we co-operate and collaborate to fight for the common goal? Solidarity is a must! The present issue tests not only the civilization and the advancement of science and technology but our scientific temper as well as our mental strength. What do we want? - Defeated or Victorious? If we want the later, we should know how to play our roles in facing the issue. As Nelson Mandela once said, “May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears”, it is right time for us to choose wisely. On the other hand, why shouldn’t we get panicky, when the death toll mounts up to thousands? And how many deaths do we still expect and will accept? The crisis may not be our fault but we are part of it. This is the moment where our patience is tested. 
Amidst the COVID-19 disaster, it is needless to say that we are under a gloomy sky of ignorance and stupidity. There is no doubt that we are frightened and it is legitimate to feel so at the moment. Every disaster teaches us lessons, and there are lots to learn from the present one. Unity matters a lot! Every action we take, every step we follow should be for the common good. We are in the darkest days of our lives. Nobody wants to be in this darkness forever. We can remember Maya Angelou where she said, “You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to encounter the defeats, so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, how you can still come out of it.” Hadn’t we been in the darkness, we would have never known the brightness. So, at this crucial juncture, we need to be very calm to react wisely and effectively to the issue. We should not allow ourselves to be defeated at the hands of COVID-19. We may recall that India successfully helped to curb smallpox and polio and why not the current one. But this needs to be worked upon together. We are required to be optimistic. Helen Keller was of the view that ‘optimism is the faith that leads to achievement; nothing can be achieved without hope and confidence’. Let us not get frightened foolishly. This may unknowingly lead to nervousness, terror, dismay, anxiety, and depression. If we continue to do so for no rhyme or reason, then we may get killed by anxiety and depression before the virus reaches us. As the saying goes, ‘every cloud has a silver lining’, there must be solutions to the present problem. Every nation must be trying every way possible to eradicate this malignant COVID-19. Let us take part in it by following the instructions and guidelines given to us by the authorities concerned. Let us stop adding insult to the injury. Let there be ‘zero pseudo-scholar’ who will be active in disseminating all possible false and foul information. The problem we face today is because of human’s knowledge that has exceeded its limit. We cannot make COVID-19 Iago of the world. This noxious element cannot defeat us. Ernest Hemingway rightly contended that ‘man can be destroyed but not defeated’. There should be feasible solutions to the issue. We cannot be in this utter helplessness for long. It is no wrong to get worried at this moment, but worrying will not solve the issue. Worrying will unknowingly lead to insanity. Latter, it should not be that the issue becomes ‘insanity vs man’ instead of ‘humanitarian vs COVID-19’. We are in a battle between virtues and vices, and ultimately, virtues will triumph over vices. But to achieve so, being hopeful is necessary - not the hope that the present disaster will bring the end of the world and help us to meet our fate but a hope that we will undoubtedly overcome the crisis.
As Martin Luther King, Jr. rightly expressed, “But I know, somehow, that only when it is dark enough can you see the stars”, we should stand united and fight to overcome the crisis and learn lessons from it and make ourselves responsible for sustenance of livelihood on mother earth.