By Rachel Garvey
It’s the beginning of a new year, a new decade, but for some, 2020 isn’t the start to the new decade that they had imagined. There are people out there whose new year is filled with breaking bad habits and sticking to their New Year’s Resolutions, but there are others out there across the world who are filled with fear and it’s not even the end of January yet. 2020 has indeed started off on the wrong foot, with the bushfires in Australia in collaboration with the threat of World War III because of high tension between the US and Iran.
In times like these, we pray for Australia and to the millions of wildlife species and dozens of individuals who were harmed in the fires or who have sadly lost their lives. Australia had the hottest day on record on December 18th, 2019, with temperatures reaching as high as 41°C. That may seem like the perfect sun holiday to us who live in temperate countries, but for Australia, it brings feelings of fear and anxiety. Over 15 million hectares have been burnt, lives have perished, and air pollution adds to the already growing list of difficulties that Australia is now facing. Volunteer firefighters were also flown in from America to help with the blazes and work alongside Australian firefighters, both sides working together to stop the fires from destroying their livelihoods and the country’s landscapes. Celebrities have also donated millions of their earnings towards helping Australia get through this time of need, celebrities like Leonardo DiCaprio donating $15.6 million to save endangered animals and Chris Hemsworth donating $1 million, as well as pages being established for online donations so any person in the world can donate to helping Australia through their time of need. However, there was a bit of silver lining when firefighters were jumping for joy when a downfall of rain put out a bushfire in New South Wales. For every cloud, there is a silver lining.
We also cross our fingers for an end to the tension between the US and Iran, after World War III was threatened due to the US forces assassinating Iran’s second most powerful military commander, Qassem Soleimani, in anticipation of an upcoming attack on US targets and the response brought a lot of anxiety to American civilians along with the worldwide public, as Iran warned the US to prepare for a strong response, but President Trump is ready to respond if Iran retaliates. There is never a dull moment in this world no matter what time of the year it is. What we do need to realise is that for every cloud, there is a silver lining, with every difficulty there comes a spark of hope. Take for example the downpour of rain in New South Wales, it was as if a miracle had happened.
2020 may have started off on the wrong foot, but that doesn’t mean that it will stay like that. For every wrong step that we take is one step closer to stepping on the right foot again.