Ignorance is bliss. That’s an old saying. Some people are so content to stay in the dark, choosing ‘not-to-know’, immersing themselves in the unknown so they will feel safe and secure. The things that you do not know will not hurt you, so they say. While the other people are full of curiosity, still some are not so eager to find the truth. But in the context of the pandemic, is ignorance still bliss? Maybe not. In the current situation, when everything is uncertain, there is no vaccine yet, and the medication is still in the trial-error process, ignorance will only kill lives. Can we live without any remorse after seeing how our ignorance killing people? I don’t think so.
Yesterday, I heard some news that one of the student’s guardians in our pesantren was suspected of having Covid-19. So, the chairperson asked the related families to self-quarantine. Even though the Swab-test result has not come out yet, the advice did not mean to freak out the family. It was purely because the chairperson was concerned about the other people’s safety.
It was shocking to hear that the related family got angry with the chairperson’s advice. They thought the chairperson accused them of having Covid-19 as if the disease was a disgrace or, worst, a curse.
The chairperson tried to explain the local and global situation regarding the pandemic; Still, they ignored him. Besides getting angry with what they called ‘accusation’, they also said that the pandemic is merely a political conspiracy, so there is no need to worry because we all have Allah who will permanently save us from any disease or disaster.