Stop counting

The number of Filipinos who are getting infected by the Covid-19 virus is increasing.
Each day breaks the number of those who get sick the previous day as if there is joy in the daily attempts to outdo a previous record.
Thanks to the Department of Health for continuously posting on a regular basis what day is better or is worse than yesterday. And every time we are updated of these numbers, we worry and we get frustrated.
Despite all our efforts to slow down the transmission, we are not getting the desired result, let alone, achieving herd immunity. We know because we count.
The numbers do not lie. If the trend is increasing, it only shows to prove that we are not in a better situation where we were when the pandemic started. In fact, the spike in the number of infections shows how poorly we have dealt with this crisis.
Should we remain hopeful then with a data that reflects a miserable result? And what about the repeated lockdowns and quarantines that we had to go through if the number of Filipinos who are acquiring the virus is increasing, then, the sacrifices we made were all for naught.
Perhaps, the DOH or those in charge with our health and safety should stop counting the afflicted, the infected, the cured and the dead. It is not doing us any good. For each time a report on the number of sick people is reported, we retreat to our houses and confine ourselves within the four corners of our own prison, unmindful that in doing so, we are suffering more that what the Covid may inflict. If the Covid can laugh, it will, not because it is victorious but because it is making us look like defeated cowards.
The economy is suffering with much of our countrymen losing their jobs. Micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises cannot cope up with the situation wherein today they are allowed to open and tomorrow they will be forced to close. Our children have to contend learning their lessons via video conference. They have no friends except the computer which is bereft of emotion.
We are molding a generation of loners, depriving them of developing their potentials into becoming social beings. No wonder mental health issues have arisen. All of these because we number the Covid cases but we do not number of people who are hungry, deranged or plain lonely. In this time of trouble, there are several or our countrymen who have shown no compunction into committing suicide.
Our people have channeled all their energy into fending the virus forgetting that there are other issues of equal dynamics. From thence, everything took a backseat. There are more essential things, like our mental health and the education of our children, which must be taken cared of aside from counting and worrying about the number of people who get infected. It is becoming very unproductive and is tempting us to lose our sanity.
After all, the percentage of people who get cured far outweighs those who die. Instead of counting the sick, the dying and the dead, it is far better to count those who live to tell the tale that “yes,” we can co-exist with and we can overcome the virus provided we properly use our personal protective equipment.
Just a passing thought. I believe it is about time we stop counting the number of infected. If ever the counting becomes necessary, it must remain closed and confidential so as not to further scare the people away. Remember, what you do not know won’t hurt you. If we do not know the extent and magnitude of the damage that the pandemic has wrought, we shall remain braver and bolder in restoring our shattered lives.
This time, ignorance will work to our advantage and Covid 19 will not run amok again.