When I wrote this two years back, frontline workers were the topic of discussion. We may have never had an opportunity to realize their contribution before, much less acknowledge it, but COVID brought them to the forefront – the unseen soldiers who suddenly became critical to our very existence…
While we explore our work-at-home and social isolation options, there are many out there, at the forefront of it all, ensuring that the spread is contained. They are putting their well-being on the line – doctor, nurses, cleaners, airport personnel, security personnel…so many fighting for us, so that we are safer. Let’s spare a thought for them, thank them whenever we see them, pray for them. It isn’t just soldiers who defend us – these professionals are soldiers of a different kind too. I’ve been seeing cleaners trying their best to sanitise our surroundings near our home – with just a thin mask between them and disease.
Walk up and thank such people – a small and genuine word from the heart goes a long way.
Two years down the line, they have become invisible again. The cheers that rung from our balconies have stopped, and our thankfulness seems to have…subsided. We are back to ignoring their humble requests, and we breeze by them in our masks well positioned below our noses, because well, we don’t really know if they still need to be there.
Does the thankfulness have to stop just because the cases came down? Will it return if the cases start to rise?
A lot of jobs are thankless jobs – cleaners, ushers, nurses, security personnel, homemakers…we don’t seem to find time to acknowledge them as we run through our busy lives…maybe it’s time to slow down a bit and show some heartfelt gratitude.
What do you think?