Letters to friends and close family are written in the same way as you speak to them. Write
letter to your friend or relative in another city telling him/her about your studies during
Covid-19 pandemic
Answers
Hi David,
Nice hearing from you, I'm glad to hear you're getting by okay in these grim times.
You asked how’s it going for us back here in New Zealand.
You would have heard that the whole country is locked down and with breaks for exercise and shopping, we’re all living under a sort of voluntary house arrest.
The start of the lock down triggered in me an old feeling from past years.
We can only stay staunch and hold out for a win.
Of course a factory strike analogy goes only so far, like the analogies with World war 2 several people have cited.
Today we’re not in a strike or a war but confronted with international spread of a frightening virus with no known antidote.
Yes, hunger, wars, alcohol, tobacco and existing influenza kill millions more than this virus every year, that’s still no reason to take Corona virus lightly. The disease spreads quickly from carriers before they show symptoms, it's incapacitated and killed many people. It’s devastating major cities world wide.
So the authorities here have chosen to impose a lockdown, to try and break the chain, a strategy which so far seems to make sense.
It’s been quite a ride and we’ve found out some interesting things, even after just three days.
Some of us are much better placed than others. Despite government relief measures, thousands of workers will be struggling desperately. Some will lose their homes, many workers won’t get their jobs back.
At the moment there’s understandable faith in the authorities line of march and positive response to the Prime minister’s injunction for everyone to be “kind to each other”. Some people angrily dismiss any questioning of our government over this.
I think at such a time we need our critical faculties more than ever. As my friend Rina and Anna put it:
Asking questions about the response also does not amount to minimising the threat that COVID-19 represents or thinking it is a conspiracy, or even that it’s being purposefully exploited right at the moment or whatever. The destructive systems we live under are bound to produce epidemics, and it’s surreal but it’s not really surprising to be facing a global pandemic. It would be weirder if we *didn’t* experience that, really. The thing is that it is totally possible to realise it’s reasonable to adopt extreme measures because of a pandemic, while still seeing that those measures have their own relationship to other political trends, and also have their own momentum and possible long term implications”
In the new circumstances there’s a sudden social awareness of low paid workers vital importance. Society's dependance on rubbish collectors, drivers, cleaners, hospital workers etc.
Best to your and yours,
xxx