SARS. Am I freaked out? Yes. Am I scared? Yes. Do I wish I was on some other planet? Yeah, I think so.

You know, you think these things will never happen in a place like Singapore, where medical facilities, technology and security are not things we question. We are superior in all these aspects. We are far advanced in science and technology. We have gone far into the exploration of the life sciences (at the expense of the arts. Yes, I am griping here). We are, in other words, an advanced, modern, developed, hi-tech country.

But we have fallen victim to SARS.

People in Singapore are paranoid now. Plastic masks are almost all out of stock. So are disinfectants used to clean hands. A sneeze will send people literally scooting to the other end of the train. Or library. Or office. I'm even uncomforatble with sneezing in public now because I don't want people to think I have SARS and glare at me for being inconsiderate enough to wander out of my quarantine area.

Tonight, we had to have cell group in NUS because SAJC is closed and they're pretty strict about it. Sunday School for children will also be cancelled this week, although service will go on as usual. It's hitting me rather hard.

I work in a place where I have direct face-to-face contact with travellers from all over the world. Just yesterday, one of them was unwell and looking for a hospital. And I think of my friends who work in hospitals. And I think about what they have to go through mentally. It's tough. It really is.

You know, we're living in really uncertain times. No jobs, war, SARS... you know how they say, when it rains, it pours? This is really hitting home for me. And I'll admit that I'm scared. I confess that. All I can do is pray. Really, times like these make you realise how fallible, vulnerable and frail the human being is. Times like these take away our pride and self-confidence and reduce us to a heap of insecurities, fear and uncertainty. We can only do so much. Haven't we realised that we are in the hands of the Almighty? It's hard to imagine this, but at the end of it, He is still in control. He still knows what's going on. And He hasn't forgotten us.

So yes, I'm scared. Because I'm a human being and I have feelings. But I'm secure. Because I know Who my Father is. And hard as it is to let Him handle everything, it's pretty much all I can do now. I'm not preaching. I'm just doing the most obvious thing one does when one has no power to do anything - give it to the One who does have the power.

Take care of yourselves.