Remaining positive during a calamity is easier said than done. So let's focus on positivity so that we can ride out this turbulent period.
Perhaps I am in a better position and more fortunate than many people who have lost their jobs.
I can afford to watch 24-hour channels, surf the Internet, chit chat and call my friends.
Nevertheless, I think about what I'm going to do the next day. I am bored stiff as I can't cross borders and go to Rawang to have lunch with my friends.
Just meeting my friend Lee, the head chef at the restaurant, makes my trip there worthwhile. I have known Lee for 35 years.
Practising little acts of kindness goes a long way to uplifting people.
I tell Ali, the owner of a stationery shop in Lucky Gardens, Kuala Lumpur, to continue serving his customers, despite the challenging times. Ali smiles when I boost his morale.
Ever since the pandemic, I have stopped bargaining with small-time vendors. When I collect my laundry, I make sure I give the Filipino or Indonesian worker the small balance due me. It brightens their faces.
I thank the guards in my residential area for keeping us safe. Always think of those who could benefit from our kind thoughts and empathy.
Also, retire every night with a positive acknowledgement of something you accomplished, learned or are grateful for. It will remind you that not everything that's happening right now is bad or depressing.
My friend, Naban, told me that after 49 years of working, he can relax at last. His teaching contract with a university expired last year. Prior to that he was with Malaysia Airlines for more than 36 years.
Does he feel despondent? No. "I am learning to be positive and strong during this pandemic," he said.
And why not? He has had a pretty good innings in life by any measure.
Now he appreciates spending time with family, engaging in walking and yoga to find a new rhythm, meaning and balance in life.
Reading, writing, listening to music, and encouraging and helping friends are his daily routine.
Texting and calling friends, ex-colleagues, classmates and residents' association members will help us remain positive.
Some people, however, look at others as possible carriers of the virus. To be hypersensitive is beyond comprehension.
They should realise that they need their friends and neighbours in the event of an emergency.
Meanwhile, others have been mean, denying their maids' employment, thinking that they are infected.
This is in spite of the fact that everyone in the family has had two jabs of the vaccine and maids too have been vaccinated.
However, after taking into account all the positives and negatives, I believe that this pandemic will soon be over.
I remain cautiously optimistic and believe that better days are ahead of us.
BENEDICT LOPEZ
Kuala Lumpur
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times