Despite what certain interesting folk have been preaching, no the world isn’t ending. Kinda feels like it at times with the lockdown and everything but the earth is still spinning.
This month, our OWLS prompt was Adapt. Something that, if you think about it, humans have been doing since we first walked this planet. We have evolved and adapted to our surroundings. It’s part of our nature at this point. I’m certain it will still be present when the world does end if it does anyway.
Let’s just hope that it doesn’t happen by way of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.
You know what, scratch that. At least in Douglas Adams’s The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, the earth is simply vaporised in seconds. Rather peaceful compared to the typical alien invasion storyline.
Earth’s destruction aside, our lead Arthur Dent is now the last human male alive. Turns out his friend of the past few years, Ford Prefect is an alien and decided to bring his pal with him as he hitchhikes away from the doomed planet.
Poor Arthur didn’t even understand what was happening until he woke up onboard a space ship. What else could he do but adapt?
I know this probably wasn’t intended, but I find The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy to be a great example of the whole “keep calm and carry on” mentality that exists in the UK and worldwide. We just came up with a catchy phrase for it that is now used for tacky memes.
For crying out loud, on the in-universe The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy book it “has the words DON’T PANIC inscribed in large friendly letters on its cover.”
If history as shown us anything, it’s that panicking and not adapting is a lethal combination. During wars and other outbreaks, it was those who stayed level headed and adapted survived, while those who fell prey to panic didn’t fare so well.
Even now, at an age where we have all the knowledge we could ask for at our fingertips, we had armies of panicked people buying everything left and right.
Adapting is part of our nature, but it isn’t easy. Changing mindsets and habits can be a right pain at the best of times, let alone times like these. However, during a crisis like this its sink or swim. We need to make some changes if we want to flatten the curve and prevent loved ones from falling ill.
In my case, that means staying home, doing online training for work and of course not panicking.
Easier said than done as I panic at the drop of a hat, but if I can keep calm and carry on, then anyone can.
Thank you for reading! If you haven’t already, please read Jack’s. Keep an eye out on Hikari’s blog as they are up next.
Also, if you want to read my rant about why The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy is my favourite book of all time, pop back on Sunday.
Nerd Rambles 
The Marine Corps slogan isn’t “Improvise, Adapt, and Overcome” for nothing.
Adaptation is there in our DNA. Our distant ancestors adapted or they fell off the family tree.
Thing is, we hardly ever have to do it anymore. Most of us, myself included, have lived lives of comfort and safety. If you’ve never needed to do a thing, the muscles and mindsets involved atrophy from lack of use. There’s bound to be some aches and pains until you come up to speed.
LikeLiked by 4 people
I’m glad to say that my family has been calmer about the situation compared to the start, I think it’s because there’s a bit more info about the virus but also just us actually experiencing and finding that we’re safe and healthy still. On the flipside, I realize my family has resources that others don’t and I think it’s many of these vulnerable people that can’t just stay calm or that have to force themselves to appear calm because that’s what society is pushing. Also, some people are eerily calm and that can also be a problem, I’m finding it scary how nonchalant some people are about what’s happening, myself included. I still try to do what I can to flatten the curve but I’m noticing that there’s an air of indifference on what’s happening to others and I’m like don’t let yourself go there!
I guess if I dig at it deeper this detachment and desensitization can turn the situation into a “survival of the fittest” scenario so I think a bit of panic is important, just enough to remind us that this isn’t normal and that it is an emergency and that it should just be about “me” but trying to protect as many ppl as possible
LikeLiked by 4 people