Sense of Humour Above All

A fun night on Sunday to celebrate the 50th birthday of a friend.

The virus is the story presently gripping the world. Its latest starring role is being played by Italy where the whole country is now under lockdown, with the government order for "people to stay at home and seek permission for essential travel".  It is reading like a bad movie.  I have never seen in my life such happenings at a global level. 

Meanwhile, the great human tragedies of Syria, Libya and Yemen continue unabated.  None of these stories attract anywhere near the attention engendered by the virus.  Actually, for me, it is like Syria doesn't matter, going on and on due to lack of interest from the world.  So people in Syria are murdered, imprisoned and tortured without most of the world even bothering to notice. Maybe it is simply a case of what is not in your own own backyard is not of any great concern to people.

This virus because it is so unknown and so universal, is in everybody's backyard either because of reality or possibility or pure fear.  This makes it a matter of concern for all people, although I wonder how they see the virus in all parts of the world.  Maybe it is not yet the issue in countries still remaining neutral or seeing the virus as a story happening somewhere else.  I don't know.
 
Anyway where I stand, the greatest tool for fighting this virus, apart from being wise and being concerned for others, is a sense of humour which I see arising in social media.  While Australia suffers from a rush on toilet paper (which I just do not understand), it is also giving rise to a healthy round of toilet humour.

The human spirit cannot be killed, even by a virus.  A key tool in keeping the human spirit healthy is ever a good sense of humour.  It helps keep a perspective with the eye remaining focused on the greater good and the true evils in our world.