Without prompt, or any requests, our partner NGO, Eco Himal Nepal sent us seven essays written by their staff and asked us to publish them for the world to read. We present them here, in raw unedited form. They are beautifully written, informative and moving. The Coronavirus pandemic is a truly global challenge.
Observing Global Suffering from a Tiny Window
by Narayan Dhakhal
We heard and recited about COVID-19 endemic at China during its inception but never had perceived it seriously till it became a global problem. There is a saying, “Disaster never notifies but Warns”. We even ignored it and dialed to take it as a warning and global leader were busy making a joke calling it The Chinese Virus. And now, the world as a whole is suffering from the adversities. This global pandemic therefore calls for a time of solidarity and compassion.
I believe “COVID-19 does not come inside our house itself, so do not go out and to invite it in”. This resonates with the message of lockdown throughout the world. I personally, and on behalf of my organization would like to request people to stay at their homes, maintain social distancing and be calm and mature about the situation. Do not panic but be well aware of the preventive measures. Follow the precautions made available by a reliable source which can be the government or World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines.
On the 20th of March, Friday, as the situation was getting worse in the global context, I had to make a decision regarding my staff members. As an executive member of my organization it was not an easy task for me to let all the staff members stay at home. But being the responsible one for official decisions, on behalf of the staff members and organization, I decided to send them home. For me, the preventive measure prior hand seemed more reliant than a curative one. The staffs are our assets and safety of their life is of high importance at any given time. I was blamed for taking a decision at the heat of the moment but I was sure on the call I made and communicated the same to all staff members. When the government of Nepal announced a country wide lockdown and requested the citizens to stay at home, practicing social distancing, it proved that I made a wise decision.
By the grace of god and our high precautions, all the staff members are safe and at place where they are comfortable. In the beginning, I was very stressed on managing everything within a short period of time. Relying full day and night on the cell phone to contact staff at remote distance, I effectively managed to halt the work in a right way. It was not easy to stay at home, motivated to work and communicate due to lack of some foreseeable resources. But, the theory of adaptation works and we have to adjust with whatever we can to make the best out of this dreadful situation. I am in touch with all our generous donors, well-wishers, stakeholders, beneficiaries and staff members on a regular basis. I still worry about the pandemic and ways in which it can harm me or someone close to me. But, being a responsible member of organization, and in a bigger picture the world, I am trying my best to manage resources, and act wisely. It has been a process of self-discipline in practice as it is better to stay in isolation for nobody knows who could be the next carrier of virus and how or when could one be infected.
Hence, this is the moment to express global solidarity and have positive thoughts and feelings, spending quality time with our family members. We need to practice gratitude and remember that this shall pass too. All we need to do is follow certain sets of guidelines and keep ourselves from getting infected.
Also, putting in perspective and analyzing our suffering, we, the Nepali people have still not fully recovered from the devastating earthquake of 2015 and the India border blocked. A mindful Nepali citizen has not forgotten the impact of boarder blocked which hit us inhumanly during the times of the earthquake. But even through such hard times, we faced it head on and survived. I believe, that we will bounce back better in unity.
Let us hope, from all our precautions and government efforts, the situation will not get worse and world as one, will be able to overcome it soon. Where ever we are, lets try our best to spread positive message and information. Do not exaggerate and negativize the situation, for the ground reality is different.
Staying at home I remained curious about the perspectives of my staff members: what are they thinking and how is the copping measures at their end on their own?
Below are some thoughts of our staff members on their situation and experience, in their own words.
28th March 2020
Narayan Dhakal
Executive Director
EcoHimal Nepal
Kathmandu