Thursday, March 28, 2024 | Ramadan 17, 1445 H
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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

Earth will continue to spin and life will flow again!

SAMUEL-KUTTY
SAMUEL-KUTTY
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Everyone has different ways of coping with situations that are not familiar with, especially the COVID-19 pandemic. Many people have used this time to develop relaxation habits such as meditation, contemplation and listening to music, while many others tried cooking or indulged in indoor games.


But this period of uncertainty provided many of us an opportunity to embrace the world of words to beat COVID-19 induced stress.


Since the outbreak of the pandemic, like many of my friends and colleagues, I too dug into a number of books and revisited many of my old favourites. But a tiny book with a little over 100 pages, narrating the story about rising up even after being destroyed, found to be more inspiring and relevant than it has ever been.


The Old Man and the sea by Ernest Hemingway, even after its publication 78 years ago, no doubt, continues to be a feast for the senses. It is a simple story on the surface, which has a message that man is not made for defeat. I reread the same pages — and then the same chapters — over and over again!


Although short, the novel reveals the never failing truth that a man can be destroyed but not defeated. It tells the story of an old Cuban fisherman, Santiago, who goes too far into the sea and struggles with a giant fish Marlin.


It is one of my favourites along with The Mother by Maxim Gorky, A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy that I read when I stepped into the world of English literature.


When I started reading the classic first time, to be honest, I had thought it to be a boring fiction. But I was proved wrong. I found out there are many hidden meanings, which made me enjoy the novel. That is the reason I read it again.


In spite of his age, Santiago is able to endure hunger, pain and isolation. He nobly blames himself, not the sharks, for the loss of Marlin. He acknowledges that he has gone too far out into the sea.


Whenever Santiago is threatened with despair, he summons up his internal resources. He calls up memories of his strength when he was young, and he sometimes prays. Santiago has unlimited potentialities in the presence of danger. Every bad situation hurts. However, it sure does teach us a lesson.


Through the novel, the Nobel laureate advises the readers, “Live your life to your fullest potential, never give in, never surrender”. Our lives might end, but the impressions we have made will go on. Our legacy is what remains after we are destroyed.


Since March 2020, most people had their lives shaken by the COVID-19 pandemic in some way.


Even though there is no end in sight for the pandemic situation, no doubt, life will return to normal at some stage, but the world will look different because of the health and economic effects of this virus. Let’s all cope with these times as best as we can.


Santiago’s world is extremely tough. They survive day to day on what they can catch in the sea. He has little food and his friend Manolin sometimes brings him sustenance.


Most of us are much, much more fortunate than that. Everything can end tomorrow. Focus on what is important to us. When all this is over, Earth will continue to spin, and life will flow again! And be grateful for what you have in this day and age.


 


SAMUEL KUTTY


@samkuttyvp


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