Today is the 100th day of the year 2020. Who would have guessed what a difference a month makes? A month ago we thought Covid-19 was under control because while we did have cases, we had no deaths yet then. To those blaming the previous government, hey, look it up. The then Deputy Prime Minister chaired a meeting to discuss coronavirus on 26 January 2020, which was a Sunday and the second day of Chinese New Year. Sure we didn’t ban foreign tourists then but we did ban tourists from Wuhan and the Hubei Province. And just so you that you know, Italy banned all flight sites from China from landing from 31 January 2020 but that didn't help Italy, did it.
Then the second wave of Covid-19 happened and the cases and deaths started increasing. This second wave is the main cause of all deaths here, and not the first wave which was those brought in by Chinese tourists. This second wave is brought back by a Malaysian student studying in South Korea. So yeah, if you have to blame someone, you should blame Malaysians who are carriers and brought the virus back from abroad. Not the Chinese tourists! But of course certain people choose to believe and see what they only want to believe and see, not the facts.
The Premier League might have proceeded as usual if Arteta had not tested positive and even then, it took a while for the FA to decide deferring all matches. I for one feel that the season should just be ended now. Belgium is the first European league (I think) to make a decision: rest of the season cancelled, and effectively the most recent standings declared final. So Club Brugge are champions and Gent go into the CL as runners-up. Relegation is still to be decided.
I had such great hopes for this year. I usually don’t care much about starting a brand new year but this year is the Year of the Rat and also a Leap Year. I was born in the Year of the Rat and a Leap Year so this is my year (mind you, not everyone born in the same year is in the same Chinese Year; some of my mates whose birthdays fall early in the year were actually born in the Year of the Pig). Before Chinese New Year, I asked one of the Chinese uncles I had gotten acquainted to during our bus rides if the Chinese think this would be a good year. He said that as an analogy, rats have to work hard and so it will be a hard year at first but that the year will improve. The economy will have a downturn before it will improve (indeed, France has entered a recession and the Head of the World Trade Organisation has warned that of the deepest recession of our lifetimes in the wake of Covid-19). As a Muslim, I don’t believe in the Chinese kind of predictions but it so happened that Allah has decided that this year would indeed start out as difficult and challenging (and that may be understating it). This year was supposed to be a great one for me, as I recover from yet another failed relationship and as I ponder my career direction.
I still have great hopes for the year. I have to be optimistic (I can’t say I’m positive, not in the context of things at the moment!) and I pray hard that this calamity that has befallen us all will be eradicated soon, InsyaAllah and ameen. Let’s not be afraid if the virus but instead turn to the One who crush it. Immerse ourselves in the Quran and perform ibadah and seek Allah’s guidance and blessings. Allah has a plan, far greater than what we can imagine. So let’s stop worrying, stop stressing and start placing faith in Him.
As for me, I’ve decided to also be grateful. I thank Allah every day. I thank Him that I’m staying in a proper house with dad, never mind that the house is 51 years old this year. I’m thankful that our old house, while a single-storey terrace, is a corner house with a lot of space that enables me to still go outdoors and commune with nature (yes I have to endure the bloody bloodsuckers but they’re an inevitable evil presence, aren’t they) or stay indoors. I’m thankful that even though we are both bachelors with no small babies, toddlers or kids around that we have to worry about, that we have to keep occupied and care, and shop specific things for. Thankful that we live in a proper house and not in a condominium or a cramped apartment where you can hear the neighbours and feel there’s no escape. Thankful this housing area is still a green zone and not a red zone and that we can still move freely about (I see some foreign workers walking up and down every morning and evening coming back from or going to work. And I sometimes see some people taking an early morning walk too). Thankful that Allah has granted dad moderate health and that He has granted me this opportunity to spend more time with dad and to look after him. Thankful that I still have a job. Thankful that my sister sometimes have some ready-cooked dishes delivered to us and that she and family are doing fine too. Alhamdulillah.
I still pray that this Restriction of Movement Order will end soon because I’m not sure if I can endure another twenty, thirty days of being confined to the house. And I know others hope and pray for the same too. Even then, I doubt the situation will return to normal for some time. We’ll probably had to don face masks for a while but that’s a small price to pay. As for me, I’ll have to go without lipstick and rings for a while for how can a girl wear lipstick under a face mask and rings when she has to constantly sanitise her hands. Small sacrifices that I can live with, after all it’s not as if I have to go and fight in a Great War.
Then the second wave of Covid-19 happened and the cases and deaths started increasing. This second wave is the main cause of all deaths here, and not the first wave which was those brought in by Chinese tourists. This second wave is brought back by a Malaysian student studying in South Korea. So yeah, if you have to blame someone, you should blame Malaysians who are carriers and brought the virus back from abroad. Not the Chinese tourists! But of course certain people choose to believe and see what they only want to believe and see, not the facts.
The Premier League might have proceeded as usual if Arteta had not tested positive and even then, it took a while for the FA to decide deferring all matches. I for one feel that the season should just be ended now. Belgium is the first European league (I think) to make a decision: rest of the season cancelled, and effectively the most recent standings declared final. So Club Brugge are champions and Gent go into the CL as runners-up. Relegation is still to be decided.
I had such great hopes for this year. I usually don’t care much about starting a brand new year but this year is the Year of the Rat and also a Leap Year. I was born in the Year of the Rat and a Leap Year so this is my year (mind you, not everyone born in the same year is in the same Chinese Year; some of my mates whose birthdays fall early in the year were actually born in the Year of the Pig). Before Chinese New Year, I asked one of the Chinese uncles I had gotten acquainted to during our bus rides if the Chinese think this would be a good year. He said that as an analogy, rats have to work hard and so it will be a hard year at first but that the year will improve. The economy will have a downturn before it will improve (indeed, France has entered a recession and the Head of the World Trade Organisation has warned that of the deepest recession of our lifetimes in the wake of Covid-19). As a Muslim, I don’t believe in the Chinese kind of predictions but it so happened that Allah has decided that this year would indeed start out as difficult and challenging (and that may be understating it). This year was supposed to be a great one for me, as I recover from yet another failed relationship and as I ponder my career direction.
I still have great hopes for the year. I have to be optimistic (I can’t say I’m positive, not in the context of things at the moment!) and I pray hard that this calamity that has befallen us all will be eradicated soon, InsyaAllah and ameen. Let’s not be afraid if the virus but instead turn to the One who crush it. Immerse ourselves in the Quran and perform ibadah and seek Allah’s guidance and blessings. Allah has a plan, far greater than what we can imagine. So let’s stop worrying, stop stressing and start placing faith in Him.
As for me, I’ve decided to also be grateful. I thank Allah every day. I thank Him that I’m staying in a proper house with dad, never mind that the house is 51 years old this year. I’m thankful that our old house, while a single-storey terrace, is a corner house with a lot of space that enables me to still go outdoors and commune with nature (yes I have to endure the bloody bloodsuckers but they’re an inevitable evil presence, aren’t they) or stay indoors. I’m thankful that even though we are both bachelors with no small babies, toddlers or kids around that we have to worry about, that we have to keep occupied and care, and shop specific things for. Thankful that we live in a proper house and not in a condominium or a cramped apartment where you can hear the neighbours and feel there’s no escape. Thankful this housing area is still a green zone and not a red zone and that we can still move freely about (I see some foreign workers walking up and down every morning and evening coming back from or going to work. And I sometimes see some people taking an early morning walk too). Thankful that Allah has granted dad moderate health and that He has granted me this opportunity to spend more time with dad and to look after him. Thankful that I still have a job. Thankful that my sister sometimes have some ready-cooked dishes delivered to us and that she and family are doing fine too. Alhamdulillah.
I still pray that this Restriction of Movement Order will end soon because I’m not sure if I can endure another twenty, thirty days of being confined to the house. And I know others hope and pray for the same too. Even then, I doubt the situation will return to normal for some time. We’ll probably had to don face masks for a while but that’s a small price to pay. As for me, I’ll have to go without lipstick and rings for a while for how can a girl wear lipstick under a face mask and rings when she has to constantly sanitise her hands. Small sacrifices that I can live with, after all it’s not as if I have to go and fight in a Great War.
