Toomas Sildam: Words of thanks during the emergency situation
I'd like to say thanks, began journalist Toomas Sildam, two weeks after the current emergency situation was declared in Estonia in connection with the spread of the novel coronavirus.
I'd like to say thanks.
I'd like to thank our office janitors, who are constantly disinfecting our doorknobs and the desks of those who have remained at work.
I'd like to thank the employees of the cafe, who are making us food despite revenue that has likely been slashed in half.
I'd like to thank my colleagues, who have not lost their sense of humor, still get jokes and understand irony.
I'd like to thank doctors, nurses and orderlies, who are fighting for the lives of the sick against a new virus.
I'd like to thank teachers, who despite school closures are continuing to teach students while continuing to learn themselves.
I'd like to thank care home employees, who are the first and last line of defense against the virus.
I'd like to thank our loved ones, who are working remotely from home and are worried about family members still going to work.
I'd like to thank grandmothers and grandfathers, and mothers-in-law and fathers-in-law, for understanding why younger relatives aren't visiting right now.
I'd like to thank local government social workers, who are keeping a protective eye on seniors living alone.
I'd like to thank grocery store clerks and pharmacists, who are still smiling at us from a distance of two meters.
I'd like to thank business-owners, who are thinking bigger and doing more than called for by their business interests.
I'd like to thank people who are angry when merchants attract big crowds to stores with promises of 50 percent off sales.
I'd like to thank local government officials, thanks to whom their towns and municipalities are able to get by as communities during this time of crisis.
I'd like to thank rescuers and police officers, who continue to maintain public order, and Estonian Defense League members, who have gone to help them at the border.
I'd like to thank food delivery drivers.
I'd like to thank athletes who are calling on their fans in televised clips to maintain social isolation.
I'd like to thank musicians who are giving online concerts via social media.
I'd like to thank journalists who are talking about what is happening and why and not rebuking any experts or politicians for what they may have thought of the coronavirus three or four weeks ago.
I'd like to thank those who manage to find us personal protective equipment and ventilators in a world that has been bought dry.
I'd like to thank state officials, who are responsible for the weight of the emergency situation and the handling of the coronavirus and who are working 24/7.
I'd like to thank politicians who understand and ask experts how we can really lift our economy back up, such as by building major state-commissioned infrastructure instead of throwing money out of a helicopter.
I'd like to thank people from the coalition and the opposition who believe in cooperation in this time of crisis, and want there to be more people who believe in this.
I'd like to thank those who aren't mocking their fellow citizens for being afraid, because right now it's the coronavirus disease, not fortune, that favors the brave.
I'd like to thank everyone who remains calm.
I'd like to thank the prime minister for threatening us all with a full quarantine if we don't comply with current restrictions.
And, in perhaps a month or two, I'd like to thank all of us for complying with these restrictions after all.
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Editor: Aili Vahtla