A fictional pandemic
life
The different
perspectives journaled of lives during this Coronavirus pandemic have given
some insight into the way we deal with situations somehow out of our control.
The organ grinder of our government’s spouse created a veritable work of fiction
about the Coronavirus experience of their family situated in London when in
reality, they had driven up to stay in Durham.
All on the premise of
the need for childcare, which left us reeling from realising some people were
above the law. Lest we forget, Make Wakefield’s family does own a castle, they are
too establishment to follow the rules. [iNews:
Mary Wakefield Spectator article: How Dominic Cummings’ wife’s coronavirus
story differs from his statement]
A wealth pandemic
life
A few days ago, we
were brought to luxurious Kensington, a large house with enough space to invite
order occupants to sequester as part of the enforced quarantine process. What
followed was a life lesson in the power of wealth to insulate you from the common
that the exclusive almost begins to grate.
Now, I have no issues
with the piece Shruti Advani wrote for the Financial Times, it was a window
into the cares, concerns and priorities of those who do not have to bother
about the means to get anything done. Self-absorbed and lacking in
self-awareness as it might seem, you begin to realise that you have to find
ways to create your own bubbles in a turbulent world. If wealth gives you that
opportunity, then, so be it. [FT
Wealth: The awkward lessons of my luxury lockdown in Kensington]
Accommodations of orderliness
What places her in
this exclusive situation is borne of many things, she inherited wealth, used
to edit a magazine about private wealth, and her husband is a venture capitalist. She
retained a sense of order around the house tripling the delivery of flowers and
when she found that kiddie arithmetic was a bit out of her league, she hired a
private tutor for her son whose educational challenges appear to be between
schoolwork and chess, forestalling the future need for a psychiatrist.
There is a method to
the whole narrative. Engaging in some conversation on Facebook, someone noted
that she was namedropping. The names dropped were those of helpers rather than
of friends or colleagues. It exudes in my view a sense of confidence without a
hint of social climbing, the designer or brand names simply mirroring her
comfort zone. Obviously, she has a personal shopper.
Reality is at the
door
Yet, her world is not
devoid of reality, the pandemic bears weighty risks, death being present and
threatening with the recognition that wealth offers some protection, but it is
not a talisman. The pandemic through being spread around the world more by the
rich has inordinately affected the poor and ethnic minorities more.
The undercurrent of
the writing still points to the many pressed into service to make our lives
bearable, the nanny, the florist, the delivery men, the private tutor, the house
help that cooks, the personal shopper, the police, and the ambulance crew.
Eliminate those you cannot afford.
I came away with two
thoughts if I were ever to be affected by it at all, that wealth is a mindset
and something you need to be conditioned for and that it is a nice life if you
can afford and live it with any sense of guilt or apology. We are not called to
carry the world on our shoulders, there is usually enough on our plates.
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