A Year in the Coronavirus Pandemic, March 15, 2021 - Reflections

TODAY marks the first year of our family lockdown to prevent the community transmission of the deadly coronavirus. We counted the days since day one of the lockdown with our nightly family Rosary to ask Mary's intercession and protection against the deadly virus. And today is our 365th day of praying the Rosary.

The coronavirus pandemic has engulfed the whole world and literally put humanity under its grip. It brought havocs to our normal way of life and forces the world economy into a stand still.

A pandemic is declared when an epidemic of an infectious disease has spread across a large region, multiple continents or worldwide, affecting a substantial number of people worldwide. This is the case of the coronavirus and so the World Health Organization (WHO) declared it a pandemic in March 2020.

THE YEAR THAT WAS

How are we coping with the coronavirus pandemic after a year. What lessons are learned from this disaster? Let us reflect for insights.

The coronavirus pandemic forces us to re-examine our values and priorities and go back to the basics. For nothing that we used to value in this life has any meaning and usefulness in the face of possible death from the virus. We cannot bring any worldly baggage to the next, except our very soul to face God's final judgment.

People lost jobs, as even big business closed down. Other companies allowed work from home for their employees as alternative.

Companies that cannot do away with human intervention were not permitted, and a number of them stopped operation completely.

Travel was controlled, and in some cases totally prohibited to prevent community transmission of the virus. That crippled the tourism industry, admittedly an income earner for local governments, thus, severely affecting also the transport sectors.

Face to face classes were not allowed, but at least blended learning is an alternative.

Public worship was controlled, and only a few were allowed inside Churches. Others found a way of meeting their spiritual needs via streaming of Masses and other liturgical devotions.

Hospitals were full to capacity at times, and health professionals are dead tired attending to the sick; some in fact lost lives literally and it will take years to replace the fallen health professionals.

Everyone has been affected. Some are blessed to have survived; others did not make it, mostly the vulnerable and the elderly. Human lives were lost to the coronavirus. How do we console with those who lost their loved ones? "The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away." (Job 1:21)

The pandemic has changed our lives radically and unexpectedly. People are hungry, tired of the lockdown, and some lost their sanity.

But we survived, and so life goes on even as we face the challenges of another year of this pandemic.

CELEBRATE LIFE

Then we realize how fragile life is. At any moment it can be taken away, even without our expectation and consent. So then, let us be grateful for every second of every day that we get to spend with people dear and we love. Life is so very precious because of people we hold dear to us.

The wise say that we only live once, yet if we do it right, once is enough. For it is not really how long we live on earth, but how well we live that is the measure of our worth as a person.

Life is hard on all of us during this pandemic. We are doing the best we can to live and survive. So learn to be kind, to be gentle with ourselves and especially gentle too with others who have it worse than we do.

In reality, life is not meant to be easy anyway; it is meant to be lived, the best we can. Sometimes happy, other times rough. Yet with every up and down we learn valuable lessons that can make us stronger as a person. Sometimes, our toughest challenges turn out to be our greatest blessings. It all depends on what we make of every life situation.

So consider each day a blessing. Let go of all the worries and just be grateful for all the beauty around us. At least make the choice to see the beauty in each unfolding day.

Speaking about "beauty", this pandemic somehow changes our perception of what is beautiful in people. We realize that people are not beautiful for the way they look, walk or talk. Rather, they are beautiful by the way people love, care and treat each other especially during hard times.

So many sufferings surround us, those who lost their loved ones, bread winners who become unemployed, those coping with covid and other sickness. Let us be a helping hand that reaches out to the needy; a smile for those who have no reason to smile; and a light to those who live in darkness.

MY OWN PERSONAL STRUGGLE

On a more personal note, our own family has to make sacrifices and adjustments as well during these hard times.

We cannot attend live Mass and be content with meeting our Sunday obligation and other holy days of obligation via streaming. But not receiving the Holy Eucharist is the hardest part.

Our Sto. Nino Chapel in our village, which is under our care, remains closed for a year now, although I visit our Patron daily in the morning as I do my morning walk, water the plants every other day, and clean the inside of the chapel once a week. Thank you to our financial partners who continue to support the needs of our chapel during this pandemic.

We refrain from eating out together as a family like we used to do every first Sunday and special occasions for family bonding. But life goes on as well as we are content for now with food deliveries to celebrate important events.

We had to re-engineer and convert our living room into work spaces for our children working from home. It eats up space for relaxation and comfort but then we are thankful that our children at least keep their jobs when others lost their means of earning and living.

The one year lockdown has also made us closer to each other as a family. For we have to keep watch and keep healthy for each other. It re-enkindles our awareness for each other and bonding as a family. The pandemic makes us even closer to each other. Thank You, Lord for my family.

EVERYTHING FOR A REASON

As we face another year of this pandemic, we also realize that everything that God allows to come our way is always with a purpose. Sometimes we can see it easily but other times we don't see it at all. But we trust in God's providence. For the Lord uses even the greatest tragedy and deepest pain to mold us into better persons. So even when our health experts ask us to do social distancing from each other to prevent the spread of the deadly virus, by all means let us make sure that we are not "social distancing" ourselves from the Lord. So pray, and let us pray often and fervently for this pandemic to end soon and for protection while it is still on.

One year of pandemic is gone, and we are entering our second year. The vaccines developed certainly are big help but we cannot be too complacent and must continue to observe the basic health protocol recommended by experts. It may take more years to eliminate totally the virus menace, if ever.

We survived so far. Let the past year of this pandemic stay in the past. Let's keep walking forward and look ahead to new beginnings, new adventures, to a life under a new normal.

HOPE AND PRAY

And as we walk on forward, never let go of HOPE. One day we will see that all our efforts and prayers will finally come together to a new world without the pandemic. Perhaps, we will look back and wonder "How did we all get through all these?"

For now, one year after the pandemic, let us pause in silence.... SILENCE exists so that we might speak to God. And it is in silence that God communicates His grace to us.

By providential coincidence, March 16 is the 500th year of Christianity in the Philippines. We celebrate this momentous event with the theme: GIFTED TO GIVE, recalling the coming of the Christian faith in our country in 1521. It is our Christian faith that helps us to navigate through the difficult journey of life.

As the number of covid cases is alarmingly increasing again, life continues to be difficult for our people. It is faith that helps us to be strong amidst the storms of life and forge ahead by entrusting our lives to Jesus, assured that the Lord is always with us.

In the words of Archbishop Romulo Valles, current President of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, CBCP, this is the reason behind the joy of the 500 years of Christianity in the Philippines -- the joy of living in the Lord.

And with the awareness for the 500 years we in the Philippines are gifted, also comes the desire and the mission to share this faith to others; GIFTED TO GIVE.

LET US PRAY: As we journey into another year of this coronavirus pandemic, we ask You now to look upon us with love and by Your healing hand, dispel the fear of sickness and death, restore our hope, and strengthen our faith. Make our concern and compassion for each other see us through this crisis and lead us to conversion and holiness. AMEN.

Ad Jesum per Mariam!