The volcano eruption in Iceland has created a tremendous human frenzy in addition to its natural chaos of lava and ashes. One of its biggest impacts is on the airline sector, which has cancelled all the flights from and to Europe because of the ash. The situation is costing the airlines conservatively $200 million a day, while people at the airport are either camping out at the terminals on meager cots or trying to find other modes of transportation. In the age where global travel is necessary for many jobs, the inability to fly is wreaking a massive havoc all over the world. Not only can people not go to work, but also thousands are stranded in the airports. The economists also worry about the possibility of a long-term havoc, in which if the cancellation continues for weeks, the inability of people to get to work and the failure of businesses to transport products via air cargo shipments might even hurt economic productivity.

It is interesting, yet also scary, that one volcanic eruption has created such a global frenzy. I don’t live near a volcano, so the only glimpse I have had of the impact of volcanic eruptions is from watching documentaries, and it amounts only to the local dangers of the lava swallowing up nearby towns. But a single volcano and its massive eruption can affect the entire world, especially because the world is connected both by trade and travel. Human technology might be advanced, but the world is vulnerable to and helpless under nature’s works, especially its catastrophic natural disasters. Whenever I think of volcanic eruptions, I get the sense that we are like tiny ants in the vast, cosmological scale.

But the ways in which people are trying to get around this disaster shows me that although we are vulnerable, we are also versatile and resilient. Human ingenuity and endurance are amazing when it comes to finding solutions or coping with difficult situations. Despite the costly travel fare and 20-30 hour travel time, people are resorting to travel by car, trains, and ferries to get to their destination. Now it might seem like common sense that people are looking for other ways of transportation, but the acceptance of such active solution-finding as common sense is what precisely shows our versatility. When we are stuck, we don’t just stay stuck. Instead, even with our possibly endless complaints, we naturally try to find solutions to our problems. Such effort and the ingenuity in overcoming a problem is the beauty of our versatility.

If we are ants and nature is the people that wreak havoc in the ant community, we are rather insignificant. However, ants might be small, but they continue to carry the load they must carry or building the homes they must build. And many times, they are very good at what they do. Sure, they can easily die under people’s feet, but they are at least smarter than the lazy grasshopper, right?

Sources

Air Travel Crisis Deepens as Europe Fears Wider Impact, The New York Times

Europe-Bound Travelers in U.S. Struggle to Cope, The New York Times

Every Mode but Silly Walks to Get Around, The New York Times