If there was one word to describe the mood in South Africa at the moment, it is probably “gatvol”, the Afrikaans word imperfectly translated into English as “fed up”.

This month has been one filled with milestones, personally, politically and otherwise: among others, it started with my special birthday; we just had Youth Day, followed by Thabo Mbeki’s birthday; it's Father’s Day tomorrow; and next Thursday we celebrate 65 years of the Freedom Charter.

But we reach another milestone on Wednesday: 90 days since the start of the lockdown, and, I suppose this is behind the “gatvol” factor taking root in our society. South Africans are sick of the lockdown.

I am among those who have been diligently observing the regulations, but more importantly, doing whatever needs to be done to halt the spread of the virus.

The first thing that should come to mind is the devastation it has caused in many countries, including South Africa. The next thing that should cross our mind is what we can personally do to help in the fight against this invisible killer: whether it is social distancing, wearing a mask, washing our hands ad nauseam, and sanitising everything until it can be sanitised no more.

On Tuesday, which I realised at the last minute was a public holiday - the days have been blurring into each other - I decided to relax my own lockdown regulations and take a drive Muizenberg way to see the sea. My wife was nervous, but I made it clear that we’d stay in our car and, if we needed to get out, we’d do so where there were few or no people, we’d wear our masks and we’d observe social distancing. I had not seen the sea in more than 80days.

It became clear very soon that hundreds, if not thousands, of others had the same idea, but what was shocking was the callous regard many had for the fight against the coronavirus and the risks to which they exposed themselves and others.

Many people were walking along the road between Muizenberg and Kalk Bay without social distancing and without masks. The coffee shops were making brisk business and it seemed like everyone was saying: “Pandemic, what pandemic?”

I got a sense of people feeling that they would/could not be affected by the virus and, if it should happen, it should just happen. This is one of the reactions when people feel “gatvol”.

I thought back to a telephone conversation I had with my sister in Mitchells Plain a few weeks ago. She wanted to know when I was going to visit, and I said not any time soon. She told me that in Mitchells Plain, there was no lockdown. Most people were carrying on their lives as normal.

Therein lies the problem. There is not going to be a normal - new or otherwise - for a long time, at least not until there is a cure for Covid-19. This is our new reality and the sooner we accept it, the more chance we will have of coming out on the other side alive.

Watching President Cyril Ramaphosa speaking about opening more of the economy on Wednesday night, I realised that we have now reached the stage in the fight against the pandemic where we hold our lives in our own hands. No level of lockdown is going to have any effect unless we change our behaviour.

Our tasks are simple: wear masks, wash your hands a lot, social distance, sanitise and stay at home if you can. This is our new reality and we need to embrace it sooner rather than later.

(First published as a Thinking Allowed column in the Weekend Argus on Saturday, 20 June 2020)