Growing Old – Lock Down Day 31

After months of avoiding all the news and information on COVID-19 just sticking to the essentials, I find myself drawn in today. The main reason for this avoidance was that whatever the news outlets were reporting it seemed obvious they hadn’t got a clue neither had the scientists, which is why the scramble to do research in all countries started. Getting down to the basics, Scientific opinions still differ as to whether viruses are a form of life or organic structures that interact with living organism! The only thing they seem to know is “A virus is a submicroscopic infectious agent that replicates only inside the living cells of an organism and can infect all types of life forms, from animals and plants to microorganisms, including bacteria and archaea”

4 months down the line scientists are starting to piece a few snippets of information together and I am sure in the coming months or years they will understand more, but the world looks on, waiting for a magic vaccine or cure to protect us all. We are assured treatments and cures are right around the corner and that hundreds of clinical trials are underway with China itself having over 80 three months ago. The truth is that developing a new drug specifically for the COVID-19 illness might take years, which is why WHO and participating countries are fast-tracking this worldwide trial of drugs by testing ones that are already widely available. With many scientists funded by pharmaceutical companies it leaves many reports bias towards the funder, so the race is on for the pharmaceutical companies, who will get there first and make trillions in profits!

The site IFLScience looks at a report showing the University of Cambridge have tracked the genetic mutations revealing three branches on the family tree of SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus responsible for the respiratory infection COVID-19, which they call A, B, and C. From these original 3 we now see hundreds of mutations around the world already, so how can there be a magic bullet on the horizon? although we will be sold one for sure. These treatments may prevent a certain strain, help with symptoms, prevent them from becoming severe and save lives, which of course is great news to all, but as other researchers have found, more strains of the original basic virus have been found (6 strains in Myanmar bat populations). So maybe it is time to look beyond the magic bullet with profits in the billions, and time to start looking at how and why these viruses are crossing from species to humans and what part our destruction and pollution of the planet is playing a part. Although this may be a problem that I agree with, the consuming of wild animals or parts of it in medicine has existed for century’s, especially for medicine. It would not still be existing today if deadly infections had come from it, so we need to look below the surface to find out why regularly over the last few decades, new deadly diseases for humans are crossing over from animals.

The Plague, a bacteria that killed around 100 million people during the Black Death still exists with an estimated 1,000 to 2,000 mild cases reported each year in the world. Mainly found in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Madagascar, and Peru it is of course easily treated today with antibiotics. It is reported that in Yellowstone’s National Park, half of the Cougars had been exposed to the plague between 2005 and 2014 and 1 boy scout was infected after a visit, showing that deadly human diseases don’t just disappear but live on.

Viruses and bacteria will mutate for survival as can be seen in the overuse of antibiotics, we now are now seeing superbugs that are resistant to treatments. Unless we learn to live within the natural flow of things then humanities future may not be guaranteed, the supremacy that we are emanating, may if we survive, see us sat in impoverished or barren lands not the beauty that surrounds us now, although for sure other species will thrive in those conditions. The insects and creatures we are causing to become extinct make up our ecosystem, once all the bees are gone there will be no more pollination to keep what we now see as nature thriving. We do not own the rivers and waters, it is provided free of charge by nature herself for all its inhabitants, In our arrogance we forget that nature will fight back for survival or evolve with new species that may destroy the plague of humanity.

Although this all sounds depressing I feel it could actually be a clue to helping us to look beyond our current mindset and our societies way of thinking. Nature has its own natural laws, you can see that certain crops or plants thrive when placed near each other as in permaculture. Each living creature has a natural habitat too, but we have destroyed many of these through human expansion, especially global corporate projects polluting and dumping waste products. We have destroyed most of the natural ecosystems, by building dams, changing the flow of rivers, cutting down forests and rainforests, this has led to so many species having to move from their natural habitats for survival. With wildlife having to evolve to survive then it makes sense that the pathogens they carry, often quite harmless, will mutate and evolve too.

Many tribes and Indigenous people understand this and I feel we need to go back and seriously learn from them. We need to understand that every action has a consequence and find ways to work with nature not against it, after all, we are just another animal/species on this planet, and nature far more powerful and wiser than man, will adjust to bring back balance to herself and her inhabitants. Its time to re focus our attention away from the $ sign and work with nature to create a sustainable future working in harmony with all Planet Earths inhabitants.

To finish I would like to share the video below, showing the Yosemite National Park in all its glory without human presence for a few weeks. I also read that Coyotes, bobcats, bears and other wildlife are reclaiming the land that we have driven them from, they must be feeling freedom has returned just like we will after isolation. I hope you enjoy it and maybe look online for other videos that have been made, where nature has taken back control, you will see they are more beautiful than we could imagine. Lets not go back to the ugliness we created but strive to create pure beauty around us for all of Earths inhabitants. Please stay safe and take precautions to protect yourself and loved ones including taking care of your mental health and lets create more beauty around us 💜