I haven't
ever read so much news about the same thing. All day, every day, Covid this, Covid that. Impact on credit markets, commodities markets and stock markets. Impact on jobs, work-from-home arrangements and furloughs. Impact on exercise, toilet paper and haircuts :) I understand. I guess a lot of journalists are confined at home, having no opportunity to investigate anything else, so... y'know. Covid XD
But if there's something that has struck me more than the health policies, economic fallout, and social dynamics of this event, it's that crisis crystallises love, or in some cases unfortunately, its absence. Anecdotal evidence seems to suggest a rise in domestic violence - turns out some people were really only tolerating each other in absentia. Scuffles over things from toilet paper to bubble tea imply that a "every man for himself" mentality has taken hold of us.
This isn't meant to be a criticism of the foregoing behaviour - I'm not in those people's shoes. I have an income, I have food in my kitchen, I have a wife and kids who love and understand me even when I'm grumpy from being cooped up at home. Most of all, I know that God is in charge, He loves us, and He knows what He's doing, even if we can't see it right at this moment. If I was not in this position of assurance, I'm not so confident that I would really behave. So, no judgy-judgy.
But I
am inspired and thrilled by those who are catalysed
into love. I've seen many instances of generosity, and here are just 3 examples, from the last couple of weeks:
a. my employer delivered, yes literally delivered masks and sanitizer to each employee's home, and then donated thousands of masks to migrant workers in Singapore who appear to be bearing the brunt of the Covid-19 outbreak in Singapore. So proud of our management - they remembered to look after us, and then remembered that, while they didn't
need to do it, other people need looking after too, so they did something about it. Yes, even corporate decisions can show love, so those of you who are in a position to do so, do so!
b. an old schoolmate organised a bunch of people to collect, refurbish and distribute used laptops to help children from low-income families cope with home-based learning. I am sitting at home now, typing on my laptop. I have another laptop for work. My children have a laptop for their schoolwork. I even managed to find two laptops that I no longer use, cleaned them up, and dropped them off at that schoolmate's charity. What a privilege. Maybe, like me, you have that privilege too. But someone remembered that not everyone does, and then he did something about it. Fantastic.
c. as you might know, I organise a monthly bread distribution and befriending programme for residents living in rental HDB flats. With the circuit breaker measures, we had to stop, because we're not a formal charity, only a bunch of like-minded friends, so we have no dispensation to visit people's homes!
But you know, the elderly in those flats are precisely the people who are going to be hardest hit by isolation from a social perspective. Many live alone, and they look forward not just to our bread, but our companionship. So I asked my friends - we can't go, but delivery services can. Much more expensive than our usual bread, so who wants to contribute?
I was overwhelmed by the response - within one evening, I had more pledges than I could use at once. And I must say - it wasn't necessarily the rich people who were quickest to respond, but really the regular people who were swift to be generous. Perhaps those of us who live in excess comfort have forgotten what it's like to not have enough, just like I never really thought about not having enough laptops, until my schoolmate's initiative reminded me otherwise.
The delivery services were, at the time, overwhelmed by too many people making orders to stock their kitchens (I guess?), but we finally managed to pace out our orders over time - and we're onto our 2nd round of orders now! It was so heart warming to be able to call our friends in those blocks, catch up with them about how they're doing and how we're doing, and tell them to expect groceries to be delivered to their doorstep. Kudos to the anti-fraud people at the banks too - they noticed orders being made to many different addresses and sent me a notice asking - are you sure??!! :D
=====
You know, crisis management is hard. The number of things that have to be thought through and executed behind the scenes, just in my own office, is amazing. I'm grateful for colleagues who are both capable and caring, who are leading us through this - making decisions, providing guidance. I can only imagine how hard it is to lead crisis management for an entire country.
It's easy to criticise what others are doing - whether it's our leaders making these decisions, or our compatriots executing these programmes, or the frightened, angry and confused, who misbehave as a result of the crisis. "What are you doing??", we may yell as we sit at our keyboards and TVs.
Sure, they may be making mistakes. I don't know if I would do better if I were in their shoes, or if I were in charge. Maybe I would, maybe I wouldn't. The fact is, I'm not in charge. But I am in charge of many other things. Certainly my own time, my own resources and my own energy. So instead of yelling "
What are you doing??" to others, I realise the far better question to ask is "
What am I doing??"
If anyone reading this is interested to explore the answer to that question, please, get in touch :)
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7
Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to act.
Do not say to your neighbour, "Come back tomorrow and I'll give it to you" when you already have it with you.
Proverbs 3:27-28
=====
I woke up this morning
Saw a world full of trouble now, thought
How'd we ever get so far down
How's it ever gonna turn around
So I turned my eyes to heaven
I thought, God why don't You do something?
...
Well, I just couldn't bear the thought of
People living in poverty
Children sold into slavery
The thought disgusted me
So I shook my fist at heaven
Said, "God why don't You do something?"
And He said, "I did."
"I created you!"
...
I'm so tired of talking about
How we are God's hands and feet
But it's easier to say than to be
Live like angels of apathy who tell ourselves
It's alright, someone body else will do something
...
If not us, then who
If not me and you
Right now, it's time for us to do something
If not now, then when
Will we see an end
To all this pain
Oh, it's not enough to do nothing
It's time for us to do something!
Do Something
Matthew West (2014)
Comments