There is a strange rage in the air
A strange kind of discomfort
Silence, panic and breathing low
The sun shines a little less today
The wind blows little slow.
The world is standing still, as if hanging by a moment. When I was very young, I once came across to an essay subject: Write on a fictitious scenario, “A silent world”. I had to imagine a world that is standing still, there is no hustle or bustle, no children are playing out in the field, no factories working. How would that be? The only planet in the universe that has hopes, that has noise and that has dreams have gone silent. The teacher must be crazy to think about such a topic. I still remember, I couldn’t think of something smart enough to write, as I never thought, it is a scene that is ever possible. It sounded too much impossible to me that, I left the essay and went on to something else. My imagination didn’t take me that far. But in 31 years, to my shock and surprise, I am not only writing on that topic, but vividly living that life too.
World events always give people perspectives. It builds human mind, it breaks faith, rebuilds and rebreaks. Every world event has huge impact on people, who go through them. Just when I thought, somehow more or less, we will be able to contain any further wars and plagues we are served with COVID-19. A deadly virus, that has till this moment hit every nation, 6,85,000 plus population and killed more than 30,000 people. Yes, we are served with a new generation plague, a pandemic so serious that it has literally put us human in lockdown situation all over the world. The world is truly today standing still, it is really a silent world.
Corona has put us all locked in home, and by all, I meant, almost 8 billion people of this world. The strangeness of the air, the panic buying, questionable eyes, nervous activities, homeschooling, endless household chores everything became the new normal. People are trying to adjust with the compulsory home stay by playing with pets, every day a new baking project so on and so forth. But how long, how long can the middle class and lower middle-class people afford to stay home and get fired from jobs? How long kids will stay home and watch the same old cartoons, read same books over and over again? How long can we survive, indoors without the sun playing on our shoulders?
However, I am an ever-positive person, I am taking this time as a blessing for many reasons. I get to stay home with my family in a tight knit situation, looking after each other, having beautiful quality time which is otherwise hard to manage. I am reading books, baking all the things I always thought impossible, chatting away with my 13 years old and that precious morning tea with my husband. It has brought us all closer. The pandemic opened our eyes and showed us our priorities, which is otherwise neglected as granted. The world has come as one, together, trying to stay home in order to flattening the curve.
Though people who has caught the virus or in quarantine may not be able to see all the rosy things I am writing here, for you I do extend my heartfelt wishes. But those who are sitting idle on the couch, being wasted at Netflix, my earnest request to you is, stay with your kids, cats or parents. Stay close to your spouses, show them the kindness, care for them most of all care for yourself too. Take that long shower you have been thinking about, read the book sitting idle on your shelf for years, write the book that is over due, remember to hug your family more than 10 times a day. For, you might not get another chance in your lifetime, to see life’s bigger picture. No matter what you are served with, be grateful that you are alive and still hopeful.
Amen.
Photo source: Google