Double O

Not James Bond, but the spectre of two O’s haunting and taunting us at this time, as one year gave way to the next, will the new be better than the old, or will it be same old-same old?

I’m talking about Odette and Omicron – one a devastating typhoon that took the role of the Grinch and stole Christmas for so many in the Visayas and Mindanao, in the paradise islands of Palawan and Siargao, leaving them homeless and, literally, in the dark; the other a virus mutant/variant running wild across the globe, infecting hundreds of thousands a day in surges that have trashed plans of re-opening society and re-starting ‘normal’ lives.

Fortunately, if initial studies bear out, Omicron seems to be more benign, causing mild to no symptoms. A doctor has even posited that Omicron may be Nature’s ‘vaccine,’ with those infected (but not sickened) naturally getting the antibodies needed for protection.

So far, here in our shores, Omicron does not seem to have run rampant…yet, many warn, just wait and we’ll start seeing thousands of new cases a day, especially if the Poblacion Girl turns out to be Omicron-positive! But let’s not push our luck; even if case numbers are low, we have to resume the vigilance that we set aside in the spirit of the holidays – mask and double mask, wash hands, keep apart, stay home, get vaxxed and boosted.

Many in the NCR seem to have re-taken caution to heart; traffic has been very much lighter since Alert Level 3 took effect on Monday, which just goes to show how many non-essential trips were taken in the last months when traffic went back to pre-pandemic levels. So repeat – mask and double mask, wash hands, keep apart, stay home, get vaxxed and boosted.

Omicron is something each one of us can do something about. Odette, on the other hand, seems to be way beyond our individual capacity; we can’t restore power or cell signal, provide clean water and rebuild houses. But we can give what we can, help when and where we can… The victims of Odette are so many and the need is so great it is overwhelming, but we cannot give up, we cannot have tulong fatigue.

Let then the Double O stand for Open hearts and Open hands. – Joie Chiu, Makati City