Covid-19: that's enough, time to buzz off

When we began our careers as journalists, all bursting with the desire to save the world, one of the popular options for us was to write an open letter. To the Prime Minister. The Municipality. The Chairman of the Board. And in these we would list our grievances. As bluntly as possible.
I was thinking, what if we had to write to Covid-19, personify it and send it on behalf of the human race. I would be hard placed to say, 'Dear' at the beginning so let's just say, 'For the attention of Covid-19'.
Please refer to the arbitrary nature of your intrusion into our lives and the agony you have caused us. We believe that while you might have won the first round and run up over 100,000 casualties, we are now hitting back. As such, time for you to pack your bags and git.
Yes, yes, we have heard that tired, old argument, that you are the big daddy of retributions visited upon us because we had pillaged and plundered the earth and in some way deserved this assault on us. While birdsong and animals walking on golf courses might gladden some hearts, the rest of us - actually the vast majority of us - are innocent victims. We are good parents, good providers, we are god-fearing and we do well by others and they do well by us. So, if you got some cockamamie message that the human race had to be chastised, you got it all wrong.
Sure, there are some of us who suck up avarice from a straw and others who bleed the earth, but that is not us. And yes, some of us in positions of power have abused them and created global warming and bruised the flora and fauna. Well, the message is loud and clear, even if you were not the messenger. But now buzz off. You see Covid-19, the planet needs human beings, men and women of good mind and intent. Without us, there is nothing, age of the dinosaurs. So you have got it wrong six weeks to Sunday.
So, go away now and let us rebuild on the values that have sustained us these centuries. Caring for our families, the camaraderie of friends, the grace of charity, the power of faith, the trillion acts of kindness, the genius of the human mind, the discoveries and inventions over centuries, the grandeur of human thought, the soaring aspirations of science, the genius of our music, the laughter of our children, the majesty of our architecture, the splendour of our harvests, we haven't done all that for you to render them nought.
So, be a good fellow and push off now, before you wreck the most precious and unique planet in the solar system.
bikram@khaleejtimes.com