March 24, 2020

It was a few months ago when all looked normal - another year gone and a new one ahead, full of our hopes, dreams, and ambitions. We couldn't have foretold what this year would bring us.

At first, the danger seemed far and distant. Corona. It was in China. That was very far away. It wouldn't touch us, right? People even joked about it. They still do, but it isn't funny anymore.

It spread, and it spread, and it spread. It has touched upon our shores and the world is in a panic. China has been able to contain it but they've lost people in the ten thousands. It has completely overwhelmed Italy's medical system. There is a picture of massive army trucks carrying dead bodies in Italy. Nothing is quite as heartbreaking. Cases are on the rise in the subcontinent, Europe, Middle East, and the United States, and elsewhere, too.

They quarantined almost 3,000 people locally. They're home-quarantined though, and that makes me nervous, because what if one of those quarantined individuals slips out just because he feels bored of being in the house for so long? Everybody is bored. It's already happened. A woman who flew in from Iran was on home quarantine and decided to visit all the local Shi'a gatherings instead. A man on quarantine attended Friday prayer and the authorities had to quarantine the entire congregation. The government has learned from the early days though. Medical staff make rounds and visits to quarantined homes to make sure no one has tried to leave the house. I just hope their efforts are working. Reportedly, there have been between 50-60 cases of those in quarantine. It doesn't seem to have spread to the public. Time will tell.

Corona has shown two types of reactions mostly - panic and carelessness. Mom, a home-visit therapist and special educator of sorts, has had one of her kids stop because of the panic. The father has the entire house on lockdown. No one can enter or leave. Others have been too careless. Not too long ago, a group of young men were playing soccer in the park. So much for social distancing. When the parks were closed, everyone crowded the beaches instead. Now the police are patrolling the beaches and parks to make sure people actually obey.

In Spain, they held their usual Women's Day march. There were thousands of people in that event. Corona virus cases rose quickly after that. Recently, in India, people were shown dancing and mingling in the streets in "support of" the doctors and nurses working so hard to combat the virus. The medical community will not be thanking you for that. I won't be surprised if there is a sudden rise in cases in India.

If you want to help and show your support of your medical community, follow the rules of social distancing and stay home. Don't go out unless you need to. Social distancing is for your own good. You can be a carrier and not show any symptoms. Or you can meet one. Social distancing will protect you and others. You may catch it and recover quite well, but your kind, elderly neighbor across the road who has heart problems and whom you visited very recently will not recover at all. Do not visit people. Protect yourself and others.

The panic has brought out an extremely disturbing facet of human personality - greed. People are fighting over toilet paper for goodness sakes. How shameful. People are thinking of themselves and not others. Hoarders are leaving nothing for those who are in actual dire need. This has to stop.

The panic buying has reminded me of the panic of 1999. I was a child then, but Mom has recounted it several times. People were so sure that the coming of 2000 was the end of the world. Allâh knows where they got that from. They cleaned out the stores. Dad went to buy a flashlight and batteries "just in case." I think the panic had gotten to him. The shelves were wiped clean.

I'm happy to say we are not seeing a major panic buying takeover on this side of the world. There were some stores we visited that had a suspiciously low count of bread. People are buying out the pharmacies masks and sanitizers though.

We visited one the other day, and the pharmacist had hung up a paper, which he'd written on in big letters:

NO SANITIZER
NO MASKS

No, we didn't go to buy masks or sanitizers, in case you're wondering.

There was one item that people bought out that could be thought of as funny in these difficult times. People cleaned out the pet store of cat food. And these bags aren't your average 1 kg bags. They're between 5-10 kilos, and I think there are even bigger ones. How much do they think their cats actually need?

Things do kind of look bleak now and it probably does look like the end of the world even for some; but there is still hope for us, and a believer should always have hope in his Lord.

((وَلَنَبۡلُوَنَّكُم بِشَيۡءٖ مِّنَ ٱلۡخَوۡفِ وَٱلۡجُوعِ وَنَقۡصٖ مِّنَ ٱلۡأَمۡوَٰلِ وَٱلۡأَنفُسِ وَٱلثَّمَرَٰتِۗ وَبَشِّرِ ٱلصَّٰبِرِينَ ٱلَّذِينَ إِذَآ أَصَٰبَتۡهُم مُّصِيبَةٞ قَالُوٓاْ إِنَّا لِلَّهِ وَإِنَّآ إِلَيۡهِ رَٰجِعُونَ أُوْلَٰٓئِكَ عَلَيۡهِمۡ صَلَوَٰتٞ مِّن رَّبِّهِمۡ وَرَحۡمَةٞۖ وَأُوْلَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلۡمُهۡتَدُونَ))

And We will surely test you with something of fear and hunger and a loss of wealth and lives and fruits, but give good tidings to the patient, who, when disaster strikes them, say, "Indeed we belong to Allah, and indeed to Him we will return." Those are the ones upon whom are blessings from their Lord and mercy. And it is those who are the [rightly] guided.

[Al-Baqarah - 2:155-157]

Allâh also said:

((ظَهَرَ ٱلۡفَسَادُ فِي ٱلۡبَرِّ وَٱلۡبَحۡرِ بِمَا كَسَبَتۡ أَيۡدِي ٱلنَّاسِ لِيُذِيقَهُم بَعۡضَ ٱلَّذِي عَمِلُواْ لَعَلَّهُمۡ يَرۡجِعُونَ))

Corruption has appeared throughout the land and sea by [reason of] what the hands of people have earned so He may let them taste part of [the consequence of] what they have done that perhaps they will return [to righteousness].

[Ar-Room - 30:41]

That, in itself, is a message for us. This is a time for 'ibâdah, for istighfâr, for returning to Allâh and re-evaluating our lives and actions. Allâh knows best if this is a punishment or a test, but it is definitely a time to turn to Him sincerely.

I don't feel that hope is completely lost for our recovery. I watched the documentary of the lockdown of Hebei, China, where it all began. It was the most terrifying and inspiring time of my life. It was scary and it gave me hope at the same time.

That said, it does not mean you can be careless. Don't panic, stay calm, trust in Allâh, and take proper precautions.

I know without being told that I'm an at-risk factor of the pandemic. I had pneumonia almost three years ago. I was admitted for almost 20 days. I was almost put on a breathing machine. My lungs have never been the same. I have to be extremely careful. I keep a cough syrup at all times. I take it whenever I'm slightly off as a preventative. It usually works.

I've never been one to socialize, so the social distancing isn't a hardship for me; but it's kind of sad, too. Mom and Dad have been divorced since I was 12. Now I can't visit him or hug him when I see him since we live separately. Dad is being supremely cautious. He doesn't leave home unless he has to. He came to pick something up from the house and never left the car. Mom needs to because of the job she has. There is no such thing as paid leave for a freelancer. I'm worried about my grandmother, too. I don't dare visit her. She's getting on in years and she's also asthmatic.

I still look to the future with hope. Life must go on. We must live the best we can.

In other news, I have begun a new book. I will not be posting it until I have a good part of it done. I have written over 50 pages so far. This book will be a companion novel to A Readymade Family, formerly known as His Child, Her Baby, Their Family. What was I thinking when I named it? My only hint is that it's about a favorite character of A Readymade Family who is not a main character. I have a companion novel for His True Worth, too, but not as much has been done.

I have begun writing for an Islâmic fiction e-magazine. The first edition is out for free. I'm looking forward to seeing how it goes. This is the fourth time I've joined a group of Muslim writers to try to publish my work. The previous three fell through. Some didn't even get started. This endeavor seems to be off to a good start.

Have you been waiting for the next update? It will be Chapter Two of His True Worth. Following that, I will update two chapters of A Readymade Family. Some have been asking about the next update for the books of From Friends to Sisters and Making the Change. I will not be getting to those just yet. I have decided my current main books will all be cut into parts of three to four because of their length. So they will require a bit of revamp and replanning before I start updating them. In the meantime, A Readymade Family, Part One is fully planned and I will continue with that for now.

I'm going to look to the positive things and what makes me happy, so I can continue hoping. At the same time, I remind myself of the reality. Tomorrow it could be me.