Our Desk | Writing amid the 11th case

Anthony Lam

Early morning yesterday, the latest Covid-19 infection was confirmed for Macau after the city recorded zero infections for 40 days.
It was not much of a surprise to me. I mean, who are you to think that Macau can stay immune when the disease is spreading to some of the most remote corners on Earth?
Indeed, compared with that Macau 17 years ago, when Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) struck the region, Macau was only a tranquil city with much lesser fame and fewer visitor arrivals. The population was also incomparable back then.
With that huge change, new cases coming in is not a matter of possibility, but of time. Not to mention the authority has said that a lot of students studying abroad are fighting to return.
But I am not going to boast how well the city has done or how we should brace for a new wave of cases. That has been happening for months. I believe it has already caused stress to many.
If you desire to find information on epidemic control, flip to the first seven pages, not this last one. You are on the wrong page.
The outbreak has invigorated creativity and innovation, if not fun, in the city. Many people have been striving hard to achieve that, but it seems that the most effective remedy is to sit down and think.
On social media, a collection of graphics that resemble those commonly shared among the older generations has previously gone viral. The collection has even made it to Hong Kong media outlets, which commended the creativity needed to urge senior citizens to keep their feet in Macau.
Believe it or not, the graphics were prepared by the Judiciary Police (PJ). The effectiveness is still unknown, because the PJ have not yet released any data. If I were to vote on the best work of the government this year, this would probably be my choice.
On the other hand, many parents were forced to work from home. It unexpectedly gave them more time to spend with their children. They have the chance to extensively witness the daily life of their children. More importantly, they can cuddle, care about, and converse with their children.
Much more common is that many people have eventually found the chance to test their cooking skills. At an earlier stage, many food outlets were closed, and people were made to stay home and realized that they had no excuse to avoid cooking.
A friend of mine whom I have known for more than a decade has taken the chance to exhibit his cooking – and food arrangement – skills. After knowing him for so long, I finally realized that he could cook!
Not only did he surprise his clan of social media (and real-life) friends with his cooking skills, he also arranged and presented his dishes nicely. He even staged a social media live broadcast where he cooked dinner for his family one night.
Once again, I’m not celebrating a disaster. I know many people hate doing so; so do I. I only want to keep a record of what happened in these past couple of months for future review.