Corona Virus Part 11, Going Greedy, Good Attempts Made in Writing

             It has been nearly 10 weeks or more since I started to post weekly updates. This more frequent approach has taken its toll on me. It has to do with trying to reach expectations followed by lot of thinking on the past and future posts. Dangerous levels are reached so much so that a small nagging pain has started in my head. I thought of discontinuing the weekly exercise but still going ahead for now. I may stop at any time if I found it to be overpowering me. My plan was to reach 10 posts and stop the serial. I can be content with what I have achieved given my limited faculties. But these days greed has overtaken me and I have given in to it. It has become one of the perspectives through which my work can be seen. Many a time these days, I was never satisfied with what I did in a short span of time and always want more. The decision making neurons are favouring the greedy option and sending me ahead in that direction.

             I am unable to measure how much is enough for me. The result of these actions over a time is what kicked in the last two months. Just for example, no one needs to work too much seven days a week like playing a match and hitting a century as well everyday continuously for a week, month, year. This is the size of my appetite these days and some of them are puzzled at how lengthy it has become. I am calling out my brain which takes the decisions and not under control as I try to take stock of my own greedy self. The decision to go ahead and write this 11^th episode is also taken by my brain and I became a slave to it. I don’t want to help others by doing more. In some ways, self-help is the best help, self-management is the best management and the world is touched upon by the person who you are. If you are a greedy bastard, you pull everyone around you into the same wavelength. I pray the lord to take the reins over my mind and give me that which is enough for me alone and not that which is enough for others as well through me.

             Another dimension of this ‘too much’ syndrome is I am writing too much as well which has been a good exercise. Writing is an enriching experience and it aids in the analysis of own self, external world and the pandemic. As many have agreed, writing our thoughts and actions in a diary regularly is a very good habit. I am maintaining the weekly frequency of online diary and it turned out that I am coming out with new perspectives and sharing them.  Through my writing, I am able to think better, understand better and know better. You refer a lot when you are writing about something which improves knowledge. You write good stuff when you are putting it in public domain which refines your thoughts on the subject. When you are filled with good thoughts you become a better person which implies writing will make you a better person. Which is why you need to ruminate upon good things and only talk or write about them. For instance, earlier I used to limit myself to India but I realised in the process of writing that I should care for world at large and humanity in general after broadening my horizon. No longer, I pray for India alone but for the good of every living being all over the world. Hope, everyone will experience such moments of realisation by taking up writing. Writing and publishing literature of value is a sign that the society is breeding and doing well. Everyone has moments of inspiration and you can share them with one and all which can impact someone for the better. Even if you leave about sharing and shaping others, the process of writing will enlighten you and shape yourself to be a better person. I don’t care if no one read my blog but the attempt involved in making up a blog post is a self-enriching experience which is enough for me.

             Looking at the covid-19 statistics, there are a total of 75.84 lakh infected cases worldwide and 4.23 lakh people dead. In the past week, again 8.8 lakh new cases came up and 30 thousand passed away. More than 8.8 lakh new cases have been registered which is a highest surge in single week so far. U.S.A, India, Brazil, Russia are the ongoing hotspots for the spread of the virus. While I made some honest confessions of my own self, let me also be honest about the growing pandemic in the new hotspot of the world. India failed in its lockdown strategy. It is simple to understand that lockdown is meant to contain the spread of virus. Once cases have reduced or become minimal, the curbs are lifted and unlock should follow. This is layman understanding of lockdown principle. But the cases are registering two times more in unlock than in lockdown. The timing of lockdown entry is very apt and saved many lives but its implementation is lenient and exit is worse.

             I tried to be positive earlier about easing restrictions and actions towards resuming normality but the reality has to be told. The reality is before each successive phase of lockdown and easing of restrictions, the number of cases should reduce but the cases are raising alarmingly and exit gates are being opened. What is this chaos and where is common sense. On one side, central government imposes lockdown, but on the other side state governments overrides the rules by going against them. Railways decide to run hundreds of trains, airways decide to run hundreds of domestic flights in the middle of lockdown. Slowly all the shops opens up including liquor shops and everyone decides to unlock themselves and finally government ran a namesake lockdown which did not restricted anything. Looking at this, the government unlocked formally without giving any notice to the statistics. Economy crashed, millions of jobs lost, lakhs of new cases registered – everything in one ill-implemented lockdown. One can at least take solace if it is a trade-off with economy and lives are saved but the objective was not met and people are getting infected more than ever. These all point to the obvious conclusion that Indians cannot be united in solving a common problem but rather remain divided and help spread corona and chaos. Learn from Chinese in how well they contained the virus with a common agenda and discipline.