“K, you’ve been through SARS… How scared should I be?”
I apologised to my friend while we were on the phone. It has been two years since our proper conversation, and somehow, rather than talking about architecture – we were explaining our fatigue in following the news of the epidemic. The fatigue was more palpable on my end as I noticed that my voice was rising, perhaps I was already at breaking point. Beyond the digital output, I was confronted by concerned individuals at work, their nervous energy was extremely susceptible. I witnessed my friends’ parents being more vocally and physically worried than us. We were all taking caution, but it does not help when fear is slowly laced among the preventative measures we are making.
Eighteen years ago, while I was still growing up in Hong Kong, I was in a similar crisis – SARS. Yes, I know that SARS is very different from the current Corona Virus, but I can’t help but notice how the reactions have closely mirrored the present. Eighteen years ago, our worries were not as amplified. Our central source of information was restricted to television and newspaper – all we could do was monitor the numbers and statistics. Each day was a count down for us, slowly tracking the declining numbers of deaths, those who were infected and being reminded to be thorough with our cleaning. The SARS did overtake Hong Kong’s paranoia, our schools did shut down (we had online homework as well), professional practices began to introduce casual clothes into the weekdays beyond Friday to regulate our laundry habits. Public places were perfumed in bleach – the caution was evident.
And the caution remained ever since. Frequent sanitation to escalators and lifts happened (there is a reason why plastic sheets are placed on top of buttons). Face masks became the usual accessory whenever we caught colds, bleach remained as the preferred fragrance for supermarkets, schools, etc. All of these are still brightly etched into my memory.
Yet, among the memory list of precautions people were taking, I could not comprehend the level of panic that has been circulating around our society today. Sometimes, I marvel at the power of social networks and media for their role in magnifying their fear. Observing some using their platforms to voice out concerns and anger is undeniably palpable. However, I feel it is perhaps it is the lack of experience to situations like this has not been experienced enough for many to take early action. Not to mention the layers of complexity have surfaced in this trying time. I’ve witnessed my community being targeted unfairly in news publications, old prejudices and assumptions of our culture fired at us on the internet. This is the consequence of fear and panic – and I am deeply vexed by it.
I may be writing this in frustration and sadness. However, I want to stay optimistic about the situations that are happening around us. After the rant, my friend and I commented on how the event echoes our speculations of future living. Perhaps the future of prevention would imitate one similar to Hong. A part of me also wonder whether this will change our perception of how we curate the future of standard of living. Or dare I say, shed light on how we need to have better conversations about racial prejudice.
In the midst of it all, I myself am trying to find peace. Eighteen years ago, I was still growing up in a place where our routine was crippled with a devastation that altered our habits for the better. Now, I am living in a country where it is their first time being exposed a case similar, however, is facing obstacles by the onslaught of windows displaying the panic.
Trying to be sympathetic in balancing the ratio of caution to panic is hard enough. And many of us are burning out from the accumulation of the nation-wide crisis. Although it is only a matter of time, patience, and being considerate – the situation will pass. While we cannot predict what will the next couple of years be like, let’s hope that these actions that have been imparted on the many can be remembered – that way we can expect that we will never have to re-encounter scenarios like this.