With the seriousness of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) threat the sporting world is taking a break since their games do not only involve participants but also spectators. The risk of infection is high. Per se, sporting events are not exactly contagious assemblies, however, it is impossible to pinpoint prior to the events who will sneeze or cough or just anyone with a fever.
Because we don’t need to have the symptoms of the infection and to be transmissible, not only the brave and selfless health workers and people with regular day jobs had gotten ill with the virus. The clergy, professional athletes, entertainers, politicians, and other above-ordinary humans also got infected. COVID-19 choses no race, gender, status, or creed.
To date, there is still no specific cure or vaccine to protect us from the COVID-19 and experts estimated that there is a possibility that 40% to 70% of the public could get infected. Let us all pray and hope that their estimations are wrong.
The whole of Italy is in a lockdown and in an op-ed published by The Boston Globe headlined “A coronavirus cautionary tale from Italy: Don’t do what we did”, Italian journalist Mattia Ferraresi wrote, “I and many other Italians didn’t see the need to change our routines for an enemy we could not see.” As we all know, next to China, Italy has the highest number of infections and casualties. “In the end, each of us is giving up our individual freedom in order to protect everybody.”
Welcome the birth of ‘social distancing’ and what it means. It is just plain common sense to keep our distance from people for at least five feet away if possible and to avoid gatherings of more than 10 persons. You can’t go to bars, museums, theaters, and malls in New York now since most of them decided to close. Restaurants, on the other hand, only do take outs.
It is not a good idea to go to beauty parlors and barber shops as there are absolutely no ways we can distance ourselves from our favorite barbers and beauticians. There’s nothing better than a good body or foot massage, but with social distancing, all we’ll get will be a long and hard stare from the “masahista.”
We always like to visit our relatives and friends. However, in the situation that we are currently in, it would be better to make use of applications like Skype or Face Time to get in touch. Skip the gym for the moment since it is a confined place. I heard a friend complain that they were stopped by some village watchmen from playing tennis for COVID-related reasons when inside the gym – beside the tennis court – a Zumba class was being held.
Staying at home will be the best option. Unfortunately for most of our labor force who depend their existence on their daily wages, it would be tough. The implementation of the thermal scanning that resulted in long and crowded lines was messy to say the least. Because you had queued for a while, by the time you finally had your turn to be scanned, you already have fever. Social distancing?
We’re in a difficult and trying situation, and this should be the time we join hands and help the government in their fight to control the disease. If we can unite when Manny Pacquiao fights, why not now? Why not now when the entire nation is in clear and present danger? Why not support instead of shouting on the streets with all those nonsense that are without any concrete solutions presented./PN
