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The Battle for My Creativity​2020 and the new-found interest in numbers

So, there is an interesting phenomenon on the streets of the city. Not just on the streets. On terrace-tops, inside homes and  office corridors. Even in  the smallest slum and the dingiest by-lane. Shop-keepers and customers. Virtual chat rooms and live webinars.The poor and the rich.

All are talking about Maths. Numbers. Statistics. Graphs. (Yes, Maths and related subjects). Never realized 2020 will engineer a renewed interest in Maths.

The conversation usually takes on this drift.

231 new positive cases yesterday.
50% of cases above 60 years.
The doubling rate is gone up in the last 12 days.
Public buses can take upto 20 people at a time.
Religious places can have 10 worshippers at a time.
The curve is flattening and we can all get back to normal life.
Wait a minute, the Aarogya Setu App found 12 people in the radius of 1 kilometre.
Make sure you wash your hand every 1 hour. Keep 6 feet distance from people

(Don’t worry, the above numbers are mostly fictitious unless clearly verified information received from confirmed sources)

Suddenly, everyone is talking numbers. The Maths Professor and the rickshaw-puller are tabulating the same numbers. These numbers are having interesting consequences.

Firstly, reading, processing and analysing these numbers is causing fear to be the natural default mode in all our movements. It doesn’t matter whether we understand the numbers, but fear is paralysing us from doing anything productive. Yes, we need to be aware and take precautions, but not walk in fear.

Secondly,  unusual OCD tendencies  are being developed. The more we study numbers and data and the more intelligent we perceive ourselves to be, the more it causes us to formulate extraordinary daily practices to keep ourselves safe and secure. Yes, we need to be wise and careful, but not live in paranoia.

Thirdly, there is another dangerous result of studying these numbers, famously now been called as ‘infodemic’ . The pandemic is causing equally dangerous disease of the spread of fake news. Read the newspapers. Watch the news. Scan the channels. Scroll the news feed. Same information. But different numbers. As we cannot trust  any of these sources, we decide to go to our beloved WhatsApp and check out the ‘trusted’ forwards. Most of the forwards are authenticated by a doctor of an international hospital, or a Nobel prize winner or supposedly WHO. Yes, we need to follow the news, but don’t make our decisions based on solely one piece of information.

So, what should we do? How do we navigate these numbers and make valuable daily choices?

It was Epictetus who said, ‘This is our predicament. Over and over again, we lose sight of what is important and what isn’t.’

Drowning in the world of numbers, data and statistics and living in fear, paranoia and infodemic,  we have forgotten sight of what is important.

Yes, we must stay home and be safe. Take important precautions. Be wise.

But we have forgotten some other important numbers.(these are not fictitious, but authenticated numbers)
– India is home to 50% of the world’s malnourished children
– 10 million people die every year in India of chronic hunger and hunger-related diseases
– Every 8 minutes, a girl child goes missing in India.
– (and the list could go on)

Numbers also teaches us that every figure represents an individual. A person created in the image of God. A human being created with a purpose to make a difference in their world.

We are placed on planet earth not just to survive and figure out a way to stay alive. The one life we have on planet earth, let us seek to thrive and give.

Live to make a difference in one person at a time.

Read the numbers.
Be broken.
Show concern.
Whisper a prayer.
Reach out.

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