‘We might think that what we are going through is the worst thing ever – it is not’

With a fresh raft of measures bringing the island into another quasi-lockdown as the nation continues to struggle in the battle against COVID-19, many are those whose headspace has fallen into negative territory today.

But, as with every challenge, it is how we deal with it that makes all the difference. Daniel Abela, Executive Chairman at Business Ventures Group, is choosing to give the situation some perspective.

“As I sat down yesterday eve and was about to lose myself deep in thought,” he writes in a social media post, lamenting on the difficult situation many find themselves in, a friend passed on some photos of a volunteering trip they took together back in 2002.

“We were in Durres, Albania building houses for the poor. It was one of the first charitable projects I had embarked upon,” he recalls, noting that as he looked through the emotional images, he couldn’t help but wonder at the fate that awaited the children in them.

 The photos rekindled memories of the experience, and the hardships faced by millions around the world on a daily basis – a fact which, the Executive Chairman notes, puts our experience today into perspective.

The moral of the story, he writes, is that while “we might think or feel that what we are going through is the worst thing ever,” it is not. “Not having a roof over your head or knowing where your next meal is coming from is much worse, especially if you are an innocent CHILD.”

Indeed, while the hardships we face in work and life may feel insurmountable, there are lessons to be learnt from them – so too with COVID-19.