“If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other…” – Mother Teresa
The world is not a ‘wish granting factory’, clearly exemplified by the heartbreak and damage which has been endured globally in 2020. And yet, what if collectively we brought this upon ourselves? What if this is the year we have been waiting for? A year so painful, scary, and loud that it awakens our ignorant selves and makes us rethink all our actions? Earth has been the target for our atrocities for a while now, and maybe this year has presented us with the karma we deserve for our behaviour. People have hurt other people, and abused animals to name a few amongst many unspeakable acts. Humanity continues to surprise every single day. Every day we wake up to some disturbing news about how one human has hurt another.
A key example of this is George Floyd and the anti-racism riots in the USA. The most obvious and clear representation of racism within the 21st Century. This news has told us how a black man’s life means so very little to some people. The racist actions and words people take are completely disheartening. And despite the riots and protests taking a violent turn the Black Lives Matter cause is necessary to highlight the pain and complaints of thousands of people who have a right to fight their oppressors and seek overdue reform. This is a step towards much-needed change.
But, when did it become okay to hurt other living things and who gave us the right to damage nature? We have been ungrateful and thankless to Earth. There are a hundred more cases such as this, but I chose to mention George Floyd because his story is the latest in a long line of human brutality.
The abuse of animals and humans has been going on for centuries and it needs to STOP. 2020 has taught us that if Mother Nature wants, she can destroy us all and this year has just been a trailer of what is yet to come if we humans continue with our barbaric ways. We have taken so much from this planet and have just given disappointment and brutality back to it. 2020 is not a year that should be cancelled, it is the most important of them all.
I know that not all mankind is like this, there are still good people out there who are working day and night and putting in all their efforts to make this world a better place. People who respect the world that has given us a home and never asked for anything in return. There are people working and putting themselves in danger just to help others during this pandemic: doctors who have left their families and devoted themselves to their patients. Such rare moments of greatness show us that humanity have the ability to do better.
Let us all take this year as a lesson and start mending our ways, update our thinking and upgrade our society. Let us open our arms to other humans and animals and treat everyone with love and respect regardless of their colour, caste, sex, or religion. You never know what battle the other person is fighting. Dividing humans by putting filters like income and their sexual orientation is unacceptable. “United we stand, divided we fall.” Let us keep this in our minds and improve ourselves as one society and show compassion towards others and show Mother Earth that we can do better. Let us remember 2020 as the year when mankind declares that there is a need for change. Let this year be the year when all humanity comes together instead of tearing each other into pieces. Let us grow.
Words By: Riya Agarwal (Instagram @reee_3701)
Edited By: Mariam Zara