By Howard Feldman, Synthesis Head of Marketing & People
There were a few things that I needed to pick up this morning before South Africa enters its 21 day lockdown period. I needed a few books to carry me through, I needed a few bottles of wine (I like my family, but even I have my limits) and I needed to get a few things sorted so that I could continue to record the Synthesis podcasts.
Whereas there was a not unimpressive line outside the liquor store, the book shop had no challenge practicing responsible social distancing. Which perhaps says more about us than I would like it to.
What I have observed over the last few days is that the anxiety around midnight tonight is increasing steadily as the time draws nearer. There is a “New Year’s Eve” feeling about the energy. New Year without the celebration and with a nervousness as to what tomorrow will bring.
So, what will tomorrow bring?
It will bring Friday morning. It will be Friday without traffic, without noise (unless your children provide that). But it will be Friday. And what will follow Friday will be Saturday and then Sunday. And on Monday, there will be work that is to be done, just as there is every Monday. And we will work, and we will achieve. Or we will work, and we will achieve less. Because some Mondays can be like that. And we will be challenged, and we will succeed just as we always do.
We might worry about our health. And we might have reason to worry about people around us. But we will be okay. Because we always are. And we always have been. We will get through this just as we get through everything. Even if some days are harder than others.
During the next 21 days we will be happy, and we will be sad, and will be irritable and we will be joyous and will be a pain in the butt to those around us. And they will be infuriating, and so will we be. Because that’s how it is and that’s how things are. We might have been told to stay still but we won’t be putting ourselves and our emotions on hold. We need to cut ourselves some slack and we need to be kind to ourselves just as we are kind to each other.
And we need to be productive. Because that’s who we are. And that’s why we have been blessed to be part of the family that is Synthesis. We are Hungry, we are Humble, and we are Smart. And we are there for each other.
Agility, adaptability and innovation is in our DNA. And that will help us more than that the Merlot that I didn’t buy.
Tonight, we will be in lockdown. And tomorrow is just Friday.
