Year 10 A.C. (After Coronavirus)

Dear Tarini,

I won’t bother with pleasantries. No “How are you? Hope all is good.” 

I know how you are and what you are feeling. After all, I have already been through what you are experiencing now. I know exactly what is going on in your teenage mind, because that curly head of yours is an exact replica of mine. From 10 years ago. 

I am you. You are me. We are each other. But from different decades. You, my dear, are me from the ghastly 2020. I am you, from the uplifting 2030. 

2020 compared to 2030 is like garbage filth compared to flowers, like lizards compared to unicorns. 

2020 in three words was Coronavirus. Lockdown. And Death.

2030, I would say: Advancement, Harmony and truly a new Normal. 

Got it? No?

Ok, now imagine two paintings of the same landscape. The first made by an untrained hand and an unimaginative mind while the other wondrously crafted by the creative intelligence and skilled dexterity of a maestro. 

Same world. But altogether different in the hands of wielder of the brush. Humankind.

In 2020, the world caved in to the great epidemic of this century. One was either sick, or afraid to be. Anxious and distraught people, ravaged by the fatal disease. Souls who lost a part of themselves and became permanently weary. No one truly happy. Everyone lonely, disconnected. 

The world Before Coronavirus (BC, as we call it) suffered from multiple self-inflicted wounds. Environmental degradation, pollution, water scarcity and global warming. Socio-political monstrosities of wars, communal violence, terrorism. 

For thousands of years, the earth had trembled beneath our feet. How the tables were turned by the epidemic, the culmination of Nature’s angst!

The epidemic gave Mother Nature a pause button to heal itself. By the time the first vaccine was finally developed and started reaching the teeming billions, the world was forever changed. And for the better. 

It took the world around 5 years to recover from the carnage. Scientists all across the globe worked on new, sustainable technologies. Young leaders emerged, seized the stage from the self-serving autocrats and gave our world new hope and a brand new direction.  

And no, AI has not taken over the world.

Many decades ago, John Lennon wrote a great song called Imagine. Through its lyrics, Lennon asked us to imagine a place where things that divide people did not exist. The world he sung about is what the world has now become in 2030.

Humankind has embraced solidarity, come to peace with its diversity. While political drama continues, transformational change has happened to our society. Surviving COVID-19 has infused confidence, calm and resilience. People no longer vent their frustration in the form of large-scale violence. Social evils like rape and domestic violence have greatly reduced. Gender stereotypes have been nearly entirely removed. Governments all over the world have poured funds into education and healthcare. There are fewer poor people in the world today and those too are being progressively uplifted to join the mainstream. 

In short, the world is a better place. My world is insanely better than yours. But hey, no need to be jealous! You will get here eventually. Stay safe and happy, younger me! 

This is where I must let you on something where I/us/you come in. The promise you made to yourself as a 14 year old in 2020 didn’t just shape your life, it affected the world in a profound way. 

Yes, we did it. The epoch changing 2020 set us on a path that we hadn’t imagined before. While many contemporaries were inspired to become healthcare professionals, we chose to do path breaking work in the field of virology that has now culminated in a world where viral epidemics are passé. 

Today as I step out to walk to my lab in the scenic countryside in Hokkaido, I experience a surge of optimism and pride. And I look back at you and remember those days of anxiety and then the shining path revealed itself, out of the blue. Tomorrow is that day. And my letter to you today will be the event that will change your life. And change our world for good.

Love, 

Tarini