The following #POPCreators entry was submitted by Dan Kristian Rivera. Submissions under POP! Creator Community appears “as is,” without any editorial intervention.
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The latest threat to global health is the ongoing outbreak of the respiratory disease that was given the name COVID-19. I assumed that everyone was uncontrollably panicking since day one, if I were to compare the disease into an analogy, I conceived that it was like a domino effect. A domino that constantly affects the standing of one another. Once you lay a finger and are in contact with another, it obviously deteriorates and goes downhill infecting the last ones.
It’s been almost more than six months since the first lockdown happened in The Philippines. It was such a long month of different levels of quarantines and conditions that are difficult to bear with. Six long months of mental isolation and personal struggles. We always have been startled since the pandemic and all of us were anxious. We became mentally unstable whether we are going to survive on a day-to-day basis. It’s a tricky yet realistic question that we should always dwell-upon.
As we count the remaining days of these unending challenges, the time has never felt as unbalanced to process all the happenings that we were experiencing. Emerging war between Pakistan and Iran, Taal Volcano erupted, the bushfire that was scattered all over Australia, It’s the same year when a massive factory exploded and destroyed the capital of Lebanon. The George Floyd murder which led to several protests that sparked a revolution and an ongoing series of civil unrest across different nations. This year, when hundreds of democratic countries were dying and eroding including The Philippines.
The series of events in 2020 has taught me valuable lessons we should never forget as we remember this in the surreal future. It taught me that we are always accountable with our actions, and the way we treat others will reflect our attributes. Moreover, Lessons in this situational crisis will remind us of the battle cry of inequality and injustices. It is of crucial importance to ensure that any exceptional measures introduced do not undermine freedom of expression but Anti-Terror law was implemented.
No matter how much we’ve contributed to this chaotic world, be it in the world of environment, public affairs, or social justice, life goes on. No matter how much money we make, what social order and cultural level we’re into, we should expand our ears and hearts with fully understanding how this works and humanitarian action is a must. There could have been hundreds of questions after this, a question that will leave a scar of what do we do after this? After millions of people who suffered and died in the pandemic.
But reality will always be a slap to us with present abominations, nothing has, and nothing will changed. Incompetent leaders will still be voted to power in the coming elections. Deprivation of basic liberties, poverty, unemployment, rapid population growth, and other pressing social issues.
This year has been the worst that I’ve ever had the displeasure of experiencing, thus far. Now, that’s not to say it was entirely horrible, because there were some light moments in a cave of utter darkness. I actually learned a lot about my own strength and resilience. In the face of a difficult life event, we should be able to shed light in the resilience of humanity, and this is something I see on a regular basis on our courses. It is amazing what humans can overcome and achieve, even in the face of much adversity.
Giving up should not be an option today, because the battlefield is still ongoing.
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