Hello I am Michelle Thomas from Canada. Life has never been easy for me as I am a student and used to work in the outlet of Mc Donald’s. But coronavirus gave me a huge spat on the face and brought my life to a halt. The college got online and I lost my job. With the outbreak of coronavirus in the country, efforts were being made to spread the outbreak of the virus in the best possible manner.
Therefore, during such times, it became essential to safeguard the safety of the people in the best possible manner. In such situations, the entire country was put to a lockdown wherein we had to rush to our home towns and at the same time, the entire country had come to a standstill. In order to prevent the people from going outside and come in contact with various people, the movement of the people was also restricted in the worst possible manner. In addition, the malls, cinemas, temples, community halls, schools, colleges, hotels, restaurants, etc were shut down.
The lockdown so imposed was so strict that the government had even specified the timings in which the people had to work and come outside the homeplace. What a situation that used to be! We used to wake early in the morning and buy the necessary stuff in the minimum possible time. There used to be so much of hustle and bustle in one hour and then for the rest of the day it was a pin drop silence that used to prevail outside the markets.
The police used to do patrolling and we were all made to stay indoors. There was high level security all around and all we could here were the sirens of ambulance that were taking the patients in them.
The best part about the lockdown was that I came back home and got to stay with my parents. I learnt drawing and dancing in the period. It was a great time for me. I used to stay in a Punjabi community and my parents are half Indian so it was a great time for me to learn about my religion. Also the next thing that I enjoyed the most was eating delicious things that my neighbourhood aunty used to cook.
We all live like a huge family and celebrate things together. All the festivals that our community used to celebrate were now done virtually. We all used to gather and do the prayers to keep the virus away.
I understand the value of social contact, however, when living the lockdown life, after all it is what makes us people.
The ordinary realities of the pre-COVID-19 universe, which now feel so much more than fiction, I have started to neglect.
Having enough time for myself brought me down the long direction of introspection. I started to understand the shortcomings of the pre-covid life I led.
I would tell that from being boxed inside, this introspection has given me a fresh outlook.
In the middle of a collapsing population, humanitarian disasters, earthquakes, explosions, swarms of locusts, crime, riots, brutality, the list goes on…
However, there were times when I used to miss my college, my friends, and the outings which we used to have when we were free and there were no restrictions in any manner. This actually made me realize the importance of everything in every single detail in my life.
I comfort my friends and family through difficult times, who are continuously lifting me up. From desperation of becoming effective for an excess of college deadlines or dealing with mental health challenges suffocated within four walls, I started to sympathise immensely with general human traits that help me win my own wars. I benefit from their lockout tales every day.
I developed immense respect for my mother, who, through her busy zoom meetings, tolerates two grown-up adults and their tantrums.
However, in order to lessen her job at home, I do my best to give her a hand.