It’s the way we look at things…

It’s the way we look at things…

CORONA – a name the world has come to dread.  Is this the beginning of the end or the survival of the fittest?  The time of restriction or togetherness?  Perhaps it is the biological selection?  Weeding out the ordinary or the weak so the strong and extraordinary can move up?

What are we to do?  How do we survive?  How can we best protect ourselves...  There is no dearth of questions; the answers, though, that’s a whole other story.

It’s the questions and the multitude of forwards on social media that gave me the idea to put my thoughts down regarding life as it seemed to be during these last few days.

Initially, the whole idea seemed like fun – to stay at home; not having to get ready and commute to work; no need to worry about ensuring everything from breakfast to the evening snack was prepared and kept ready early morning before leaving for work because you had to attend a call with the UK in the evening.  It used to be a lucky break that would get you home before 9:00 p.m. and I had no reason to think it would change any time soon.  But that was “pre-Corona” and then, as they say, Corona happened and history was rewritten.

But in the boredom my son continuously complained about during the first 3 days of lockdown, somewhere, somehow, we started rediscovering what it was like to have time for each other, to talk, to have our meals together sitting at the dining table, and having active discussions on what to do and what not to do.  The feeling of entitlement, that “I should have it because I can afford it, or my mom/dad can afford it…” slowly gave way to “what’ll happen to the maid who works next-door who gets paid daily if she cannot come to work, ma?” and “I’m glad we are together in one place when there are tons of families who are stuck in different geographic areas because all of this happened too rapidly…”

Classes still continue online – maybe not as much as a parent might wish for, but more than the student wants, I can guarantee that.  We have discovered, as the forwards say, a life without automobiles and theatres and malls and ice cream or coffee shops.  The interesting thing is, things still get done, the sun still rises, and sets as always and we continue to breathe and live as always.  With bated breath, now we wait for the “corona update” instead of Facebook and Instagram likes; those of us who weren’t active in these two forums are being given lessons by our children or other youngsters who are with us and who are definitely savvier.

Now it’s the turn of the teacher to be the student and vice versa.  What a feeling!  So this is how they feel when we tell them something twice and then when they ask the third time accuse them of not listening?  Who knew! 

Through it all, though, families and friendships are drawing closer, because we now have time – didn’t we always have the same amount of time?  It’s not like we’re all sitting idle now either; we do have the Work From Home gig going for us and the online lessons for the children…  So then what changed?  I say it’s the small things.  We now “see” our family.  Remember “I see you” from the movie Avatar?  We now are on our way to be closer to those who truly matter to us and it is time we shed our masks and accept that though we often say we work for our family, to keep them safe and in luxury, until now, we didn’t have time for them.

It seems strange in these times, but I’m grateful for the lesson a micro-organism taught us: through the fear and stress of these days, the teeny-tiny organism showed us who and what we are… and that the little things are what make life worthwhile…