Unprecedented
I remember an evening back in 2001. I had two young children and they were fast asleep (like their father), while I watch the West Wing on TV. As a mother to young children I treasured this “me” time. The ad break took us to a News Flash and there was a surreal report of a plane crashing into one of the towers of the World Trade Centre. My gosh, I had been standing on the observation deck of that building only a few years earlier. What a horrible, freak accident.
Shortly after I witnessed the second plane hit the World Trade Centre and suddenly this was not an accident. I woke my then husband and we barely slept all night. A sad part of our world’s history had been witnessed and during the weeks ahead we realised that life as we knew it would never be the same again. We would learn to live with a level of fear. In years we became a little more complacent about that fear, but it has never fully gone away.
That is how we are all feeling right now. We are witnessing a point in history that we will be telling our grandchildren about. I feel like I am witnessing one of those end-of-the-world movies. I expect to see Morgan Freeman (rather than Donald Trump) addressing us as the leader of the free world, advising us that we will rebuild and recover after this unprecedented disaster. Perhaps I am being a bit melodramatic, but without doubt this is going to be a defining moment in our history.
I need to commend both sides of our government for their leadership in this unpredictable time. Scott Morrison’s unfortunate holiday to Hawaii has started to fade from our memories as he is working tirelessly to show leadership. I can’t imagine the stress he is suffering at this stage. I also commend the opposition for supporting the huge stimulus package that has been extended to the Australian economy. It is with grace that they concede they probably couldn’t do much differently and allow legislation to pass uncontested. It is very easy for us to be critical of our leaders but I am sure none of us would want to be in their place right now.
The stress is real and it is on each and every one of us. The concept of contracting COVID-19 seems to have taken a back seat to what is happening in the economy. We have not had significant deaths and the number of cases is not alarming (at this stage) compared to the population. But this may change very quickly. If we do not take responsibility and the virus spreads as quickly as expected, many people will die. Our health care system is not designed to withstand this level of usage. People will be turned away from hospitals because they simply will not have the capacity to treat them. Look at Italy – at the time of writing this there had been 4,825 deaths. If this was in Australia, you would no doubt know at least some of the people who have succumbed to the virus. Once we start to know the people dying our attitude about the virus will change and the complacency will be replaced with fear.
Unless you were around to witness World War 2, this is the biggest thing any of us have seen. Our life is going to change in ways we cannot imagine in the next 12 months. Unlike September 11 where our habits of attending public events or travelling were questioned, this time we are being forced to change our habits. It will be interesting to observe how long the impact lasts, and how this will change the fabric of our culture. The virus does not discriminate. Businesses will suffer. I don’t see any “winners” in this crisis. It really is a matter of survival and without doubt many of those we look up to as business leaders or influencers will flounder as much as the rest of us.
It feels like war. We are going back to basics. We will not be able to go out and we will have to find other ways to occupy ourselves. We may have to learn how to bake bread and make biscuits (heaven forbid). I am not sure how long the 3 cases of beer my husband has stocked up on will last? I am not sure how we all will cope if he is not able to restock? No sport on TV! There will be only so many times we can watch The World’s Fastest Indian. As much as I love him, I spend time away from him every week and this is going to stop, so we will be spending significantly more time under the same roof. We really need to remember that we not only love each other, but like each other to get through this next 6 months.
My jobs means I will be incredibly busy and that is a good thing, but not everyone will be so lucky. We need to come together as a community so that we can survive and help each other survive. We need to be creative. We need to socialise in a way that is different to what we have known. We need to share stories and support each other in this incredibly difficult time.
I remind you that this too will pass. A vaccine will be developed. Many of us will be infected and recover. We will be resilient and find ways to creatively survive the economic downturn. I am confident that as Australian’s we will take this on with our unique sense of humour and mateship. Please be kind and supportive to each other. This is not about profiting – it is about survival. We can make money and build our wealth when this crisis passes.