Fragility of Life: From a Professional to a Homeless in a Short Period

Life is so Fragile. We would not know what would happen when the tragedy struck. One day she was a professional and the next day she was homeless. It all started during the pandemic.

Pandemic Aftershocks

I live in Melbourne, Australia. During the pandemic, we had 6 lockdowns with a total of 263 days. It was the longest lockdown city in the World. Also, the restriction was so stringent, we could not go beyond 5km from our house. Breaking the law would result in paying an exuberant penalty.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), the median number of divorces was 49,000 from 2018–2020. In 2021, it skyrocketed to 56,244 and returned to normal in 2022 with a total of 49,241. It was a peculiar statistic.

Lockdowns were the cause of relationship/marriage breakdowns. The real root cause was the Low Emotional Intelligence (EQ).

From a Professional to a Homeless

During the pandemic, I met a homeless woman at the entrance of the supermarket. She did not look like a typical homeless person — judging by her outfit.

It was winter, cold and shivering. As everything closed, retail shops closed, we only could buy online and we could not travel more than 5km, so the only entertainment was going to the supermarket. I could go to the supermarket at least 3 times a week.

I met this woman quite regularly. I had sympathy towards her as I could relate to her situation. My marriage was also on the brink. To avoid more arguments/conflicts, I decided to go for a stroll and to have fresh air more often.

A couple of times, I bought her food, sanitary and hygiene products; and winter clothes to protect her from strong cold wind. Then we had a chat. She was a professional and fled from domestic violence. She became a coincidental homeless. She also lost her job. All at once.

This was so tragic, that within a short period, she became homeless. The lockdown commenced in mid-March 2020. We did not have a clue what was the impact at the time. By August 2020, she lost a job and home.

Sometimes I wondered, why most of the victims were predominantly women. This is a vicious cycle. It starts with domestic violence, then homelessness. This always seems like a pattern.

The Statistics

Let’s talk about facts to prove the above observation.

Gender Ratio of the Victims of Domestic Violence
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare published the Statistics of the ratio of people who had experienced physical and/or sexual violence by a current or previous cohabiting partner since the age of 15.

Below is the Gender ratio of the Victims of Domestic Violence In 2021–2022
- 1 in 6 women
- 1 in 18 men

Women are three times more likely to be victims of domestic violence.

Statistics for Homelessness

Below are the Statistics of Homelessness in 2022–2023, according to The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. The table shows that females comprise a higher percentage than males (75%) in cases of family and domestic violence.

Emotional Intelligence Must Be Taught in School

I strongly believe that the prevention of domestic violence is to teach Emotional Intelligence in schools. The school education systems only focus on academic performance towards Intellectual Intelligence.

As far as I understand, the education systems never emphasize that understanding Emotional Intelligence is also critical. It teaches the children to be kind to one another. It prevents bullying. It diminishes the culture that ‘let’s boy be a boy’.

I don’t understand that boyish culture. What does it mean? Does it sound like if you are a boy, it is alright to be naughty and hurt other people? So, what is the message for girls? Girls should be feminine and gentle. Also, girls should accept that it is okay if a boy hurts their feelings.

Society should shift the boyish culture. Being kind and considerate is everyone’s accountability regardless the gender. This will also cultivate gender equality ideas from a young age.

Girls will have the perspective that they are equal to boys. They do not deserve to be treated as a second-class citizen. Everyone is equal in terms of social expectations for their behaviour. Any violation of these social expectations should incur the same consequences, regardless of gender.

Thank you for reading this blog and I hope you enjoy it. I would love to receive feedback (both positive and negative) from you. Thank You.

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