COVID-19 lessons - I Have Learned

It’s so astonishing how everything I taught my students from the beginning of the year has come to be proven this March of the year 2020.

I taught them the importance of discipline. And by discipline, I didn’t mean respecting the classroom rules and school rules only. I meant the ability to put restraints on ourselves, to choose what is best for us not what is desired by us, and to do what it takes to achieve a goal. The COVID-19 outbreak just proved how important discipline is as only the disciplined people and country were able to literally stop the outbreak and achieve almost a complete success in their battle against it. Yes, China has the most disciplined people, people who respect rules, take the required actions, and comply to any measures needed for their safeguard and the safeguard of their loved ones.

I taught them the importance of personal silence and demonstrated to them how we have grown incapable of achieving it for even 2 minutes. Personal silence is complete shutdown of any external or internal disturbance, interference, and communication with one’s inner self. It’s the kind of silence that allows you to self-analyse, to self-criticize, and to self-reflect. It is a personal time that you owe yourself in order to observe your current status, assess the means and ways you are following, and adjust or maintain as needed and as aligned with your goals. The COVID-19 outbreak is forcing us into this silence, yet, many of us, undisciplined as we are, still are refusing to abide and go through. Those of my students or anyone around the world who benefited for this forced silence will come out of the crisis with fresh ideas, solutions, and probably plans for a different approach in handling more sensibly Life and Earth.

I taught them the importance of responsibility. Responsibility involves being accountable for, acting in ways that align with rules or laws, and doing one’s duty as it affects our and another’s well-being or success. The COVID-19 outbreak has so finely segregated us, distinguishing between those who took responsibility for their well being and the well being of their loved ones by respecting confinement rules and taking necessary measures; and those who were irresponsible enough to deny all safety recommendations and act in a defying way or more like carelessly. Saudi Arabia as a government has proven to have a very responsible government. They have taken immediate and extremely strict measures that secured the safety and well being of their people and the residents of their country. They have even assumed the responsibility of securing every possible means for the population to continue their growth from home.

And there are many more values we addressed, the above three having the most impact in this challenging part of our lives on Planet Earth. What if this was Earth’s way of giving us a nudge, hoping to wake humanity up on their attained inhuman approach to life where greed, power, and selfishness have become the title of every endeavor?