Spare a thought
Alyson Engelbrecht • May 6, 2020
Written by Caroline Correia
On Friday 1 May, we will go from Stage 5 to Stage 4 Lockdown, but we will still be in lockdown. We must still stay at home, wear masks, practise social distancing, wash our hands continuously and limit our trips to buy essentials. Whilst we bemoan these facts, let us remember that we have a roof over our heads and a place to call home, we have a plate of food to eat, a hot bath or shower and a comfortable warm bed to rest our weary bodies at the end of every day. How blessed and fortunate are we? Most importantly, our loved ones are safe.
While I was thinking of what to write about this week, I thought of the many people who are not as fortunate or blessed as I am, and I wondered how they were coping during this time.
Covid 19 has sure thrown a spanner in many people’s plans and it is these people that I would like to acknowledge and spare a thought for in this article.
All the people who own their own businesses and are not allowed to work during lockdown as they do not provide an essential service. All those who are without an income now and are anxious as to where the next pay-check is coming from. Spare a thought for these people.
All those people who cannot self-isolate and have nowhere to go. Spare a thought for them.
All the weddings that couples have spent months planning for, awaiting their big day. Invitations sent out, venues booked, and wedding dresses made and fitted to perfection. Spare a thought for the couples who have had to put their big day on hold.
All the babies that are going to be born during this time. Couples who have eagerly awaited their baby’s arrival for the last nine months. Fathers are not allowed in the delivery rooms, so what was to be a monumental bonding moment in their lives is now just a nurse telling them that all is okay, and that baby is healthy. Spare a thought for these moms and dads.
All the elderly who live in old age homes, who eagerly await the visits from their children and grandchildren. Spare a thought for the elderly.
All the people celebrating their birthdays with their immediate families or alone. No parties with their friends and extended families to celebrate the special day that they were born. Spare a thought for these people.
All the Grade 12s who have spent the last 11 years of their schooling looking forward to the last year of school. The year they get to lead, to be counted as equals, to plan matric dance outfits and to revel in the fact that they have made it. Spare a thought for these young adults.
Over the last couple of weeks, social media platforms have been awash with stories of people helping, people performing random acts of kindness, communities coming together and showing ‘Ubuntu’ towards each other.
If you have the means to lighten someone’s load, lessen someone’s pain, brighten someone’s day, then do it. Buy someone groceries, bake your neighbour a cake, leave a message of encouragement for someone. Be a ray of sunshine in someone’s cloud!
During the next stages in lockdown, and for the rest of our lives, let us practise ‘Ubuntu.’
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