2 Proven Ways to Fighting the Covid-19 Pandemic
I was 10 years old when the Covid-19 became the most talked-about hot topic at home. My mom who is a nurse explained to me what it is about when classes were suspended. She told me the scary part about the Covid-19 which turned into a global pandemic. When I celebrated my birthday in August 2020, I was a little bit sad because both my mom and dad were not around as they were away and cannot get back home due to travel strict travel restrictions.
At first, I was happy that vacation came too early. When vacation stretched to six months, I missed my friends and classmates. When it was decided that there will be no face-to-face schooling until a vaccine is available, I realized how serious the pandemic is. I am still trying to adjust to distance learning. It is, according to my mom, the new normal.
It seems to me that this pandemic is a 2-fold problem: health and economic. How to fight it is a challenge. So, I challenged the members of my family to help me come up with ways to fight it.
Here's what we have come up with:
1. The Healthy Ways:
a. Protect yourself from others by wearing face mask, face shield and maintain at least 1-meter distance between yourself and others;
b. Observe the basics of good hygiene: clean your hands thoroughly always before touching anything - face, eyes, nose, before wearing face masks, face shields, eating, etc.
c. Cover mouth and nose with your elbow or tissue instead of your palms when you cough and sneeze. Dispose of used tissues immediately then wash your hands;
d. Clean and disinfect surfaces frequently especially those which are regularly touched such as doors, door knobs, faucets and phone screens;
e. Avoid closed, crowded indoor spaces or spaces that involve close contact such as restaurants, churches, offices;
f. Prefer open windows if possible;
g. Keep informed and up to date on the latest about Covid-19 from trusted sources such as WHO and local and national health authorities.
2. The Economic Ways:
The pandemic has become an economic crisis. In our own little way we can help by doing the following:
a) Stay home and keep our parents happy. Not only is it wise to shy away from crowded places, we spend unnecessarily when we would rather stay home to share meals and fun with our own family members;
b) Keep busy by focusing on our distance learning studies. Our efforts in keeping sharp focus will keep us from habits we used to have -- spending on non essential stuff such as toys we don't really need,
hair accessories, etc.;
c) Keep away from online shops. If you are bored, do not surf the net and end up in Lazada and Shopee. I know of kids who do to the annoyance of their parents. Instead, shop for ideas and learn new things;
d) Save. Learn the habits of saving whether it is money or materials. You do not know when this pandemic ends. When your parents are working at home, make them happy by letting them do their jobs in peace;
e) Get used to the new normal. The new normal is keeping tabs of our spending seriously. We should help our parents by behaving responsibly in everything including thinking twice before asking them for money.