COVID-19 Our Universal Language

Google Maps contribution stories
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Hi all, my Local Guides friends

Today I want to share a bit of my perspectives while most of us here being locked down in our own house due to Covid-19 outbreak. One thought has brought me back to Russia’s 2018 World Cup Championship where the major tagline is We All Speak Football. No matter what country you are from, what language you speak and what color of your skin, football can bring us together in harmony and unity. For you who are big fan of football I know we are waiting anxiously and excitingly for the World Cup Championship that held once every four years.

My name is Rita and I’m from Jakarta, Indonesia. Here in Indonesia, we have 34 provinces which lead by one governor as the highest authorities. Our major cities like Jakarta, West Java, Banten and Riau has been established Large Scale Social Restrictions, similar to Lock Down and the only differences are:

  1. People can still go out to make a living (working) but restricted to 8 sectors, such as: groceries, pharmacy, health care (clinics, hospital,laboratory), logistics, telecommunications/media, utilities (electricity, water), energy and other sector that is substantial (research and development).
  2. We can still drive our personal vehicle with certain conditions. SUV car restricted to 4 people on board, City car restricted only 2 people on board. Motorcycle are not allowed to have passenger. All people on vehicle must wear a mask.
  3. Crowds/gatherings are restricted to only 4 people maximum.

It is hard for Indonesia to do Lock Down because we are an emerging country which means there are still many people depend on daily salary. They work and earned money that is enough only to make ends meet for the day. Current days, in social media, television news and online news are packed with many stories about a bread winner that couldn’t feed his/her family anymore because of this Corona virus outbreak. Factories are closing, small businesses filing for bankruptcy, restaurant, hotels, amusement park, all of the labor intensive work place are closing down.

Everyday I said to myself that how privileged myself and my family, we still have enough savings to survive, we have food on our table 3 times a day, easy access to sanitation, my kids could watch the tv all day, 24 hours internet access and limitless time to cook, to try new recipe, reading books, listening to songs, watching movies, named all the new activities we can do or see our family and friends doing it on their social media.

It is truly heart broken seeing our unfortunate brothers and sisters crying for help. Imagine a kid in hunger and have nothing to eat because the parents doesn’t have any money to buy food. So today I encourage all of you to share what you excess to those in needs, sent it anonymously. No need to take a picture and post it on your social media, just do it because we are all human with mercy. We love our country and we love our society.

Covid-19 is a worldwide threat. One single virus can destroy a whole world. Worldwide economic are slowing down, unemployment rate spike up like never before, economic growth are declining instead of rising up, minor riots are happening right now in certain countries and it seems like there is no safe place on earth anymore. All countries are infected and struggling with it.

I always wonder what is the meaning of this virus outbreak, is it true that we have got warning from God? Is the earth currently healing itself? If yes, then we should humble ourselves and admit that we are an awful, heartless living creatures who didn’t preserve the mother earth well since she has given us much and beyond above we can think of.

Therefore, let us use this Covid-19 to unite us together, all countries hand in hand, to rebuild our civilization, stop the war and help those who in needs. Make Covid-19 as our universal language to spread kindness, to bring back our main purposes as human. Obey the rules, stay at home, wear a mask when you have to go out for the essentials. Give thanks and embrace what we have now. Support our government, our front liners (medical staffs, police, army, and many more) trust them that they have do the best, everything they could for our country.

Please go away Covid-19, I promise that I will take care of the mother earth better this time.

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@Ritamega

What a lovely writeup. I am happy that you and your family are doing really great and safe from this Pandemic disease.

Yes, only God Almighty can save the world.

However, the health professionals are doing their best to help combat this deadly disease.

Keep believing very soon this also will pass away just like every other things that came and pass.

Soon, so soon it will become a history.

Stay safe Mbak RITA.

Best regards

Austin .

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Its really a captivating story @Ritamega . The situation is not different here in the capital city of Nigeria everyone is on lockdown except those on the essential services you mentioned in your write up. Concerning the earth i will agree with you in-total that we humans have offend the earth. But as far as God is still alive we will over come COVID19

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Hi @Austinelewex

Thank you for your comment, I do really hope this will end soon. I’ve been separated for a month with my mom and sibling, so it has been a hard time for me and I’m sure everybody else. We are witnessing a history and I hope things will get better.

Stay safe Austin!

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Hi @Silooobaba

Covid-19 has been a wake up call for us that we should respect and be grateful of what we have. During this pandemic, the air pollution is diminishing, trashes are controllable and I think this is a great start to rebuild all over again. I am concerned about minor riots that are happening right now in several countries.

Yes, may God help us :slightly_smiling_face:

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@Ritamega I see you have written your post from your heart. Hope Covid-19 will stop soon and all of us will live our lives as earlier.

To tell you a truth I don’t think it’s possible soon. All world had stopped. All countries, all factories inside of them, all trade and so on. It can’t pass without result for all of us. All countries will suffer economically.

Belarus hasn’t quarantine, but it’s too small and weak not to depend on others also.

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Hi @OlgaKlimchik

I’m so happy to reconnect with you again here. How are you by the way?

I know and realize that this is will not end soon. Yesterday I just got notification letter from my kid’s school stating that all -e-learning will be continued at home until end of June. I think I have overcome the hard part being teacher at home, kind of used to it. But my main concern is my sources are limited, I’m afraid my kid wouldn’t catch up with the school curriculum.

Nevertheless, lets hope for the best and always put our hope and prayer that this pandemic will end and of course can make us a better human being.

Several days ago, I watched tv and found a story about a mom of 4 in Serang, West Java had to die because she didn’t have anything to eat for 2 days in a row. His husband is a dustman and this pandemic made him can’t go to work. So the family of six have to survive only by drinking water. Dustman are classified as a daily paid job here in Indonesia and my heart just broke at that time. Donation did come when she is dying, sadly in the evening she can’t make it and die.

This is one example why I feel so blessed and privileged but also heart broken at the same time.

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@Ritamega Your story is really awful, you do it right saying about it and pointing the problem. It’s known, that only own troubles can be easily noticed.

In Belarus everything is ok now. We have work, we isn’t in quarantine. The crisis can be felt of course, the wages will be lower than earlier. Some companies are closed already, some will be closed in future.

In Belarus schools were closed for two two weeks only. Now our president said that all flu (!) is over and pupils went to school from Monday.

Two days all children and teachers were obliged to were masks and use antiseptic. Yesterday our president expressed disapproval for these measures. From now the lessons will be carried out without masks.

Will see if these decisions are right.

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Hi @OlgaKlimchik

Glad to know that you and your family are doing ok. If I may say it to you, honestly precautions are much more better. I suggest you and your family still wearing mask while go out or while in public space.

Today China, South Korea and Japan are facing their second wave of Covid-19, I hope this will not happen to our country but seeing worldwide condition we have to be realistic and vigilant.

I agree about the lower level of wages, I’m an entrepreneur and facing the same problem. Decreasing sales means lesser profit and I have to cut off my employees with unpaid leave until further notice with a big consequences being laid off.

Sad conditions to face but still we have to hope and pray for the best :slightly_smiling_face:

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Hai @Ritamega

Thank you for your reflection about Mother Nature.

I am optimizing my senses to get what is the message from the Mother Nature.

Yes we should taking more care our Earth since we are just being invited to use and to live .

My paradigm has sihifted, I will use all the resource wisely and taking care our healthy body as priority concern.

Take care your husband and your beloved children.

Keep calm, stay healthy and always be happy

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@Ritamega Excuse me, somehow I missed your last message. I have little time to read the Connect now.

Hope we avoid the second wave of disease because of absence of quarantine. I’m too tired to afraid. The cases appear among the familiar people, no hard cases, but it becomes more and more anxiety.

Hope we’ll forget about it soon.

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Hi Pak @BudiFXW

How are you and how is your family condition? I hope everything is alright.

It is so nice to get in touch on Connect again as I am pretty much occupied since last month.

I feel that my contributions on Google Maps are declining rapidly.

I do feel that our mother earth is suffering for a long time and this is the time she is healing herself by giving us this warning “corona”

My main concern right now is how the governments can cope with this situation because all countries in the world are going to economic recession. GDP declining, unemployment rate spike to its new high, more people got infected and God, I hope the health workers are doing fine. We are in the situations that need them the most.

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Hi @OlgaKlimchik

I hope you and your family are doing ok right now. How is Belarus? Are everything has gone back to normal?

I do too spent less time on Connect and Google Maps which I feel sorry for but being lockdown with kids are tough. Hahaha

I’ve been pretty occupied by gathering education materials for my son so he will not lag behind the school curriculum. Home learning is not easy, usually my son spent 4 hours at school but now only 1-1,5 hours maximum via conference call. I just hope he can catch up all the lessons.

Have you heard that the Connect Live 2020 are cancelled? I know its a hard decision to make but safety comes first

Cheers

Rita

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Hai Rita @Ritamega .

I aam in a good contition.

Me and my wife are in Bogor and my teo daughters are in Jogjakarta.

We are in a good health.

Yes the economy is not so good.

In my opinion Small and Medium Business are not too bad.

Long years has proven that they can cope at any condition.

Hope this Pembatasan Sosial Berskala besar (PSBB - Large scale Social Restriction).

Will be over, and they can do business as ussual.

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@Ritamega Thank you, Rita, everything is ok with us, hope our family have passed through this disease already, though I don’t know.

The daughter of my colleague from work has confirmed covid-19 diagnosis, though happily without symptoms (she was checked because of the case of covid in her kindergarten). So I need to work instead of her and do my own work also while she is in self-isolation.

In other questions nothing changed in Belarus. We haven’t any quarantine and live freely. Tomorrow we have Parade in honour of World War II. No coronavirus will stand such impudence. But I hope it will help with collective immunity, who knows. The number of cases is more than 20000 already.

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