The Scars of Perseverance

How painful are yours?

If anything positive came out of the COVID era, it was a powerful lesson in perseverance. More than 12 months ago, myself and another work colleague were removed from our public bus driving duties because we possessed the double-whammy of COVID dissent: medical mask exemptions and persisting as unvaccinated lepers.

During the August lockdown in 2021, the NSW State Government unilaterally decided that this combination was intolerable and our employer was forced to remove us from the dangerous' ‘front line.’ Until October 10th, we were banned from working completely, like many others. My colleague had long service leave to chew up; I, unfortunately, did not and went penniless, chewing into my personal savings to get through, an option I realise was not available for many doubters at that time.

From October 11th, 2021, we were allowed to return to work despite remaining unvaccinated, but relegated to ‘light’ duties. In bus driving, this basically meant yard work at the depot - refuelling, parking and changeovers for breakdowns - because they could not fire us, neither did my employer (praise the Lord!) introduce a mandatory vaccination policy like Qantas, Coles, etc., did. We escaped by the skin of our teeth, as it were.

It is now October, 2022. After enduring this at times intolerable situation for the last 12 months, our employer has finally shaken off the NSW State Government shackles and sent us back on the road as of July, 2022, due primarily to chronic industry short-staffing. Of course it was never going to be that easy; at the same time they sent us back on the road the employer reintroduced their earlier policy that workplace lepers such as us had to prove, once per week, that we remained free of our assumed leprosy. This resulted in me leading the leper colony at my workplace in a 13-page, 9 legal ground dispute regarding the validity of the mandatory weekly testing policy. Within two weeks the employer had backtracked and abolished the discrimination.

My perseverance had been strained on many occasions. Going for a significant period with zero income put a financial strain on my household I have not felt since my university days. But the Lord delivered us. Going for a significant period being treated as if I was a deadly, contagious leper put a psychological strain on my psyche I have not felt since my suicidal, pre-Christian days (roughly 2004-2005). But the Lord delivered us. Continuing as an ideological enemy of the State is a most unpleasant experience. It was borderline 1942, sans the ghettos, box cars and gas chambers. But the Lord is delivering us!

Here we are, almost on the other side of 36 months of pure ideological and propagandist insanity. I wore a mask 0 times, took 0 “safe and effective” vaccinations, had 0 positive test results, had 0 days off work due to COVID (but plenty lost due to COVID vaccine mandates) and still give 0 damns about the greatest psychological deception that has ever been foisted on the human race to date. The scars of perseverance run deep, to my very bones, to my innermost being. They are part of me forever, now, although no-one else can see them. I will not give in. I will not give up. I will not cease loving my neighbour by warning them that they are victims of utter and complete fraud. May the Lord deliver us from them all. And thus the Beast which mauled and gored us dies and lays trampled in the streets.

“He who endures to the end, the same shall be delivered.” This is absolutely true. I just wish more Christians, during the COVID era, got to experience what this phrase really means. I think more of my non-Christian vaccine refuseniks understand perseverance better than the Christians do. We all bear the scars of perseverance.

Adapted from a personal journal entry, 16/08/2022.