The Mask of Sorrow

I have a dream, declared an ambitious heart.

If you can dream it, then I can achieve it challenged the cunning brain.

Aim bigger and go for more, egged the greedy mind.

We are born to rule roared the ego.

The earth belongs to us

Our superior intelligence has undoubtedly given us the edge over the other species. But, naturally, this advantage has also given us the belief that the earth belongs only to us. Our world domination might still be a work in progress but this juggernaut has been gaining momentum. But, the fun part is, we even managed to get rid of the unnecessary nuisance of guilt and remorse along the way. So, we don’t regret our actions. Life was never this beautiful and comfortable. Who cares if animals don’t share this sentiment? The Earth itself might feel abused. Do we care? Of course not? After all, We are born to rule this planet, and rule we shall.

Where is your mask?

We were all set for another high octane ride this year with an air of invincibility and conviction of our destiny to reach the imagined future. But, unfortunately, the pride of our past success and the race towards the imagined future made us lose sight of the present. Sadly, we failed to notice that nature was secretly scheming to put us in place. We even ignored the clues that nature was trying to give us. But, more importantly, we failed to listen to a chilling question that nature was asking us, ‘Where is your mask’?

Natures equal and opposite reaction

Why would we pay heed? After all, we are invincible, and we fear nothing. Do we? Since the beginning of this year, that ominous question of where your mask kept ringing in the air. But most countries were busy squabbling over who created this menace rather than acting swiftly. We even challenged the social distancing measures and got too close for comfort with each other.

Life is all about the trade-off. And as Newton would say, every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Progress and Development give us comfort but also the side effects in equal measure. But the rapid increase in human avarice sadly matched the advancement in technology. The result was a powerful backlash that we couldn’t handle. We might be able to destroy nature but we can’t beat the laws of nature. Can we?

Screeching halt

Alas, the juggernaut has come to a screeching halt. It has brought the invincible humans to their knees. We could achieve anything that we could imagine, and we could destroy anything that we see. But nature played it smartly and unfairly by unfurling an invisible enemy. In just a matter of 2 months, we are shown our place in the pecking order. We are scared, locked down, and socially distanced. The inefficiencies of some of the most influential leaders are exposed. Nations are clueless. Ambitions have given way to mere survival. We finally listened to nature and picked up our masks.

We forced ourselves to put a mask around our ego, desire, arrogance, and cockiness. So much so, we are desperately trying to cover our fears and uncertainties behind the mask. Yet, behind this small piece of cover, we learn the power of humility and the truth of who we are. This pandemic has uncovered a simple, peaceful world that we long forgot. It reveals what a sad, insignificant, and fragile species we are. An invisible enemy mortifies the invincible humanity.

Under this three-layered piece of cloth, we silently utter some long-forgotten prayers to save us from this misery. The mask is not just a cover to protect us. It is a cover that reveals the truth – a sad, bitter one that we are not as indestructible as we thought we were.

Will we learn?

Has nature completed its humiliation? The mask might help many humans survive this threat. But will it save humanity? Will we learn from the truth we are discovering about ourselves behind these masks?

Or will nature force us to wear this mask of sorrow again?