Ambiance Setting
Life in the time of Coronavirus
31st March 2020
I haven’t left my house in fourteen days! I am not allowed to leave the house. No one is. Not just in my home, but in my district, in the State or in the Country. There is a nation-wide curfew that has been declared.
I wake up at 11 am, to silence.
The day has already begun and I moan as I see the time. I wanted to wake up at 8 am, do some exercise and feel the fresh morning air. But every night, I keep the alarm and switch it off immediately. What am I going to do anyway after waking up at eight in the morning?
Amma is a Bank Manager and so, work from home isn’t an option for her. Those in the essential services can leave the house provided they have proof. We’d want her to stay at home, safe, like us. But that is not an option for her. However, these days she only has to go on alternate days. She leaves for office by 9 am and returns by 5 pm.
My sister on the other hand, works from home and so, of the 3 bedrooms in the house, she has turned one into her office, temporarily. She works until about 5 or 6 pm. My Dad’s company, not being an essential sector is closed for now and work from home isn’t an option for his job profile. So he spends his day reading newspaper, doing chores, watching TV and YouTube videos, practicing his drums, reading spiritual books or sleeping. During evenings he watches the CM’s press release and then goes out for a walk, just around the apartment.
Now, for me. I am between jobs and so I do not have a work from home situation. I have the whole day to myself which means all those things I have wanted to do, I can do them now! So though not in this order, my day consists of any combination of painting, reading, singing, writing, and exercising (when I finally convince myself to). A life that I have dreamt of I would say. But just one small glitch. I cannot leave the house.
Nobody leaves the house unless it is absolutely necessary. The maid doesn’t come, the lady who collects the waste doesn’t come, and the milk guy doesn’t come. Even if someone does go out, we ensure that we don’t touch them when they are back. He/she is supposed to wash his/her hands with soap, for twenty seconds. When we order food, we are wary of the contact with the food delivery guy. We immediately dispose the covers and wash our hands with soap, for twenty seconds.
I am living in an apartment that generally gets super-noisy due to all the children. These days, I hear the birds clearer than ever, the canal and the woods from my window look so eerie and unbelievably beautiful and if you sit quietly and listen, you can hear the silence trying to communicate to you.
Suppose someone tells you that you can have just about anything that you want in your life, but on one condition. You cannot leave the house. Will you take it?
I’m pretty sure people who have been through 2020 will say a loud and clear NO.
All of this is the doing of a virus that erupted in a market in Wuhan, China in Dec 2019. And we thought apocalypse meant screaming monsters, floods and mass earthquakes!
This post is a part of April A2Z Challenge 2020 with Blogchatter. Every day of April, I will be publishing one post on the Theme, ‘Life in the time of Coronavirus’. If you like my writings, you can also follow me on Instagram at @afew.handpickedthings.
Shweta Suresh
I haven’t left my home in 10 days. My father too has to go to work, being a banker. But I’m alone in my place because I’ve shifted to another place for work. My job profile doesn’t exactly support wfh. So here I am, blogging and doing all other things that I wanted to do. The environment is definitely calmer and less polluted. Great start to your A2Z journey. Take care. Stay safe.
Shilpa Garg
Oh yes, life has changed for all of us! Trying to do things that interest us is a great way to be sane. My son and I have been doing spring cleaning. Everyday we spend some 15-20 minutes cleaning a cupboard or a drawer or a corner. Guess, we will have a Diwali ready home in a few days. I work from home, so that keeps me busy, my son has his online classes every day and has assignments to complete. And the husband experiments in the kitchen and presents us with exotic dishes every day! Though we are busy from morn to night, but yes, we all are raring to go out and go on with our regular life 🙂
Dashy
I’d never thought of that scenario, the answer to the question is a definite no! I live next to a beach that is known to be overcrowded every single day. Now when I look out the window, there’s just the security guard and a stray dog taking turns to yawn in the beach. In the 11 years that I’ve lived here, this is the first time I can hear the sea from home during the daytime. Life sure is quite different in this time.
nooranandchawla
I clicked on your post because I’m also recording my thoughts during the Coronavirus lockdown. Yes I do miss going out, but honestly not as much as I had thought I might. But let’s see if that feeling changes through April!
Suchita
Hearing the birds and seeing the empty Bombay streets is indeed strange. A superbly penned article this.
dfolstad58
The rules are stricter where you are. There are certain conditions here in Canada where you must stay home, but by far the majority are not infected, and have not recently returned from outside the country and those two categories must be isolated completed in their home. Mainly we practice social distancing, or physical distancing. We spend time at home mainly but walking in parks and outside is permitted but more than two metres from others at all times. Right now it is only 2 degrees outside and a cold 30 km north wind so not too many people are bundling up for walks in my city. Of course the majority of businesses are closed also if they are not considered essential. No gatherings of people are permitted.
I liked your photo, it looks very green and warm. I imagine there are many types of flowers year round, and all types of birds. It looks beautiful.
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Let me begin by saying, this is a beautiful piece of writing
And yes, my answer like many others like me – would be a Big NO, it just isn’t possible-even if it means not going to work but just a walk down town, we all need our going out time
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