Letters | Hong Kong’s dark times have given us a chance to see the light

The wisdom gained after two difficult years of protests and battling the coronavirus pandemic will light the city’s way forward

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People gather to watch the last sunset of 2020 from Ocean Terminal, Harbour City, Tsim Sha Tsui, on New Year’s Eve in Hong Kong. Photo: Dickson Lee

Published: 7:35am, 12 Feb 2021Updated: 7:35am, 12 Feb 2021

We need darkness as much as we need light, otherwise, we would be restless. Hong Kong used to be a proudly restless city, pulsating with energy. We loved the Hong Kong nightlife, but now the city has slowed down and we do not enjoy the silence of the darkness.

Who would have thought that the protests in 2019 and the Covid-19 pandemic could darken the city for so long? Many of us would like to forget 2020 and perhaps 2019 as well. These two years were filled with the challenges of the pandemic, the political unrest, having to suddenly work from home or deal with losing a job, street violence, empty supermarket shelves, school closures, and boarded-up buildings and MTR stations.

Darkness has a way of reminding us of the light, but this time the darkness has descended so thickly that we barely remember the light.

Now, when we have an oversupply of time and everyone stays at home, the coronavirus has forced us to reconsider our schedules, to break from the security of habits and to re-envision our values and our way of life.

It’s actually the perfect time for us to see the bright side through the darkness, and plan for post-pandemic life, rethinking the way we live, love, work and play.

How are our lives going to change in terms of health, hygiene, education, home and workspaces, communication, joy, loving and kindness? What will we have learned in this dark year that can light our way forward?