Congratulations COVID-19
By Anders Drejer
Time waits for nobody
Time waits for nobody
We all must plan our hopes together
And we’ll have no more future at all
Time waits for nobody
(Sung by Freddie Mercury)
Reflections on Time
Today is the first anniversary of the first official and all but total close-down of my home country of Denmark. Congratulations COVID-19, you did not get us all. And it is time to go quietly into the dark.
The words from the song “Time”, as sung by Queen frontman and larger than life character, Freddie Mercury, from the 1980s seem strangely prophetic in 2021 …
Best not to be friends with one another
Or we’d have no more future at all
(Sung by Freddie Mercury)
Just to be correct, Freddie did not write that song. It was written by Guy Charles Clark / Marty Stewart / Dave Clark, the latter being the very last to sit at Freddie’s death bed in 1991. Even Freddie Mercury was not larger than life. Time has not waited for the millions of victims of COVID-19 either. It has been a hard life for many over the past year.
Just one year of Loneliness?
Human beings are a strange kind of animal. Our experience of time varies greatly. One hour in the arms of a lover will feel like one minute whereas 1 second with your hand on a hot stove may feel like an hour. Therefore, it is perfectly that my teenage daughters think that this past year has been the longest, most boring and — I use that term loosely — in their lives. Home schooling (mind you with some of the most modern communications technology that is probably not available in many other countries) certainly failed to impress the teens. And they miss social contact. Thinking I needed to figure out why, I asked a fellow professor specializing in this. He tells me, simply, that teenagers are in the process of establishing their future social identity. Including friendships and, love. The latter, I did so not need to be reminded of.
Funny story, my go-to guy when I am about to do something stupid, The Champ, once came home to his apartment after a particularly hard week at work with the criminals that we try to put straight in our organisation. The Champ has even been cut seriously in the hand by a very sharp knife. Thinking the apartment is empty, he leans back and closes his eyes — only to find out the hard way that his youngest daughter is a screamer as she made love to her future husband in the next room. He may have gotten drunk that night … I have trained with both daughters of The Champ and, trust me, they can kick my arse. And love is love.
Empty Spaces — What are we living for?
Interestingly, The Champ — after years of denying its very existence — found love in the past year. Whereas I lost the love of my life. I am happy for him. And for me. And for the Star Chef that I am no longer involved with — she is free to pursue another life that what I at my age can offer her. Good luck and Good Riddance to us all!
Not being a teenager, I greatly enjoyed working from home, not having to drive for an hour to get to work, not sitting in idle chit-chat in pointless meetings and not having to deal with any other people than ones that I really like. On every available measure, my productivity doubled. And it was already climbing as I already has started cleaning out in false friends and useless activities long before COVID-19 hit us hard.
Freeing time — and time (and your good name) is the most valuable resource that you have — enabled me to connect and reconnect with new and old collaboration partners and go on new adventures. Embracing the existing digital means of teaching and interacting with a number of organisations has been an immense joy for me. Even if I have a face made for radio, I am on a steep learning curve with webinars, online courses and films.
You see, what COVID-19 taught me was this — You only have one life, do not (if you are given that immense luxury) waste your life with things that demotivate you and make you said. Being work, people or lovers.