The world is falling apart

I’m not the only one who thinks so.

Another man killed his ex-wife and children to death. A virus has taken over the world and confined us to our homes. Trump has carte blanche to commit as many crimes as he can before he leaves office. He won’t be leaving in 2020 because the Democrats are looking like to sign their death warrant J. Biden. Trump might not leave in 2024 either.

In Australia every day our government is shown to be up to its neck in rorts. Our PM went on holidays as the country burned a few months ago – although it feels like longer. We’ve got ten years before climate change takes us all. I can’t list any more horrors because it’s all too much but let’s face it, the world isn’t a place you’d recommend right now.  

I know you know all this. We all know, deep down, that things aren’t looking good.

So what do we do?

Almost nothing. We keep going. Go to work. Pretend. Watch movies. Write shit online. Push it all aside.

A lot of us act, no matter what, as if a worthwhile future is still on the horizon. It’s kind of admirable, in a stupid sort of way. There is really something indefatigable about the human spirit, that we can carry on in circumstances such as these. If you’re not impacted too directly, if it all seems like someone else’s problem, like tomorrow’s problem, then, well, you can go about your life under any circumstances it seems.

We’re unrelenting and maybe more than a little thoughtless.

There is minor hope. It’s easy to focus on the bad. The arc of history bends towards justice, supposedly. There are good and smart people out there working on cures for all our ills, no matter how overwhelming the wickedness seems. The movies are pretty good. I have a delightful niece.  

I’m torn. Because I know I could do better. I know I should be out there fighting for a better future more than I am. But I’m also paralysed by the enormity of the problems and the seemingly infinitesimal impact I could have. So I go to work, write shit online, pretend it’s not happening.

I try to tell myself that a peaceful life well lived is something honourable to hold onto. I try to reconcile in my mind that maybe all times look pretty worthless when you live through them.

Except I’m not so sure. If I think about it for more than a second, the more I think the world is just falling apart and we don’t know how to deal with it.

I’m not going anywhere. Indefatigably, I truly hold it dear that no matter how bad life is, it’s still the best thing we’ve got. And I want to experience it all. I want to know what happens.

But gee, it ain’t looking good is it? Kinda looks like it’s all falling part.