The Oxford Dictionary simply defines apathy as a “lack of interest, enthusiasm, or concern”
But apathy is so much more than that.
It is that relentlessness with which we skip news articles screaming
“12-year-old girl gang-raped in Uttar Pradesh”
It is that indifference we feel when we scroll past Instagram where disastrous posts are stacked up on top of each other.
“Lebanon: Beirut Explosions kill many”
“Did people forget about Breonna Taylor, the 26-year-old African American fatally shot in the comfort of her own home?”
“Belarus on the brink: Strikes continue”
So why do we feel this “apathy’?
Is it wrong to feel unbothered by consecutive catastrophic events?
How can we overcome apathy?
These are some questions that pop up in our minds.
Since the beautiful beginning of 2020, we have had each month marked by some or the other form of tragedy. This may be the worst year for us but I’m sure news companies are making a lot of money by covering every heartbreaking incident for us to see. Ever since Mr. COVID-19 grounded us all in our houses, all we hear every day is “2020 sucks!”
Every day we hear some or the other issue popping up on the news or the internet. Our frustration and inability to alleviate other people’s suffering worsens when those issues start crumbling down like dominoes.
Now when there are too many tabs open in your computer, what happens to your browser?
It gets stuck.
That’s exactly what happens with us too.
We feel stuck.
At first, we religiously care for a particular cause and forward news stories to other people making them aware but slowly as time passes we find ourselves drained of our emotional capacity to withstand sorrow. It is almost like “If I see another sad heart-wrenching news story, I am deactivating Instagram!”
This helplessness is completely normal. We are human beings and though we are wired to want to help people and be emphatic, feeling apathy at the time of a global pandemic is something we all experience.
Apathy can be overcome with just a click, literally. Remember those tabs I talked about earlier. You have got to close some of them. This move may sound selfish but it is vital to renew your happiness and to be able to wake up looking forward to every day. Focus on more happy things. It is hard to find in the news we have now but they pop up from time to time as well!
“Dubai worker misses wife and draws heart on the pavement”
“Taylor Swift drops folklore album online”
“Tiny elephant shrew species rediscovered afterthought to be extinct”
Using PPE can help protect us from coronavirus, but being patient with yourself and connecting with your fellow peers from time to time can help against the other prevailing virus- Apathy.