Skip to main content

COVID 19 Lock-down Experiences: A Pessimist's Musings


So, we have entered the seventh day of the nationwide lock-down that was suddenly imposed on us to ensure social distancing.

We get that it is necessary to prevent the spread of Coronavirus or COVID 19, but how the lockdown has thrown our lives into a tizzy!

Though a lot of positive messages are circulating about how this period has made us pause and reflect on life's blessings, I beg to differ. I am going to be a hardcore pessimist.

COVID 19 has emerged as a larger monster than terrorism and ecological disaster combined. Its cruel jaws are still very active, pulling thousands of victims into them everyday. So it is necessary for us to be holed up in our homes avoiding outside contact as far as possible.

STAY AT HOME is the strict order.

Granted. We are put up at home, without our support lifeline of helps, cleaners, cooks, drivers, home delivery service, restaurant takeaways and deliveries, etc.
Lets see how we are coping.....



Why ME?

Mini wars are raging daily in households on who will do what chore. The unpleasant duties of sweeping the house, mopping, cleaning never ending utensils, washing clothes, dusting, etc. etc. are shuffled between reluctant family members.

However helpful you were in the beginning of this ordeal, doing these chores on a daily basis takes a toll on your energy and enthusiasm.

How many marriages will survive the confinement period?

Imagine being with your spouse 24/7. Even the best of relationships need space to survive. Suddenly, we have started noticing all the flaws in each other with greater insight.

No going out for dining, no movies, no vacations  = more tiffs, more sulks, more catfights.....

Since everyone is at home with limited options of distraction and entertainment, we are at each other's throats every now and then. Some of us are even wondering how we managed to put up with each other for so many years!

Won't be surprised if the number of divorces go up after the lock-down period is over.




What about Mental health issues

What about people with existing mental problems like anxiety, depression, OCD, schizophrenia?
How are they coping this terribly gloomy phase? Without counseling sessions, and even access to therapy, the condition of most of these people must be really worsening.

Watch out for more suicides, breakdowns and self-harm stories emerging after this phase is over.


(Image Sourced from the Internet)

Ray of HOPE

Well, if there is a positive, it is the news of the Earth healing itself, of bluer skies, greener grass, happier birds and animals, cleaner air and water, and minimal carbon emissions.

So perhaps Earth has sent us to a corner of the room to reflect on our misdoings!

Mother Earth..Do release us from this punishment. Promise, we will take better care of you and yours.

PROMISE REALLY. 

Comments

  1. I enjoyed this piece. You are really good at asking thought provoking questions :)

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Guru Dutt - Legacy of an Overlooked Genius

"Yeh Duniya Agar Mil Bhi Jaae to Kya Hai:" This heartfelt anguish was literally personified by film maker and actor extraordinaire - Guru Dutt, whose birth centenary happens to be tomorrow (July 9).  Maestro or Failed Genius? All his life, he strove to depict his vision, his dreams on celluloid. Yet, even as he strove for success, for renown, he was a bit of a recluse, a black sheep himself. It was as if he wanted to challenge the language of popular cinema by being within the format, from the inside. His women had brains, taxi drivers and masseurs were philosophers, sex workers pined for spiritual ecstasy, and friendships blossomed between unlikely people. Common people on the street spoke wiser logic than academics or high-nosed editors. The topics of the films may seem dated now, but the eternal truths voiced in them remain relevant.   His films were distinctly different from other popular Hindi films. They had all the commercial elements of song, dance, comedy, romanc...

Does Mother Mary Really Come? You bet!

Prolific writer-activist-thinker Arundhati Roy's memoir, an ode to her mother's formidable personality, is cleverly titled, Mother Mary Comes to Me. Below the title is a picture of young Roy nonchalantly smoking a bidi. Irreverence, thy name is Arundhati Roy! At 372 pages, it is a tome, a sweeping saga that recollects both her mother's remarkable life, as well as her own. Is it a Memoir? Yes and no. Though the book title refers to their mother-daughter relationship, the book - at several junctures treats each one of them as independent and exclusive from one another. In fact, for a good part, her mother finds no mention at all, and the reader is engrossed reading about Roy's exploits and struggles through Architecture College, early attempts to find her vocation and calling, her dabbling with cinema, acting, scriptwriting; her romantic liaisons with the luscious JC, Sanjay, Pradeep et al. A life as extraordinary and unapologetic as Arundhati's mesmerizes in itself. ...

Book review - The Stationery Shop of Tehran

Iranian writer, Marjan Kamali's The Stationery Shop of Tehran is a remarkable and touching book. Like all literature set in countries with a deeply troubled history, this book too revolves around disillusionment, pain and the desperate struggle to live a normal life.  Akin to Khalid Hosseini, Kamali intertwines the political in the personal lives of her protagonists. Class struggle also plays a major role, like education or the lack of it. The story spans over six decades and two continents, starting from 1953 Iran to New England, US in early 2013. Love lost, Lives Shattered Young lovers, Roya and Bahman try to hold on to their love in the face of all pettiness and politics, but the aftermath of trauma runs too deep.  Just as their country plunges into another political upheaval, their lives are shattered and they are thrown apart.  Yet, Kamali makes her story deeply human and optimistic. Her lovers are genuinely good human beings, kind, forgiving and full of empathy. In...