During the lockdown, life of people around the world went in for a toss. But while the pandemic and staying indoors have negatively affected many people, there are numerous others who have tried to use this time productively. Illustration by Joaquin Gonzalez Dorao Original article published in Touriosity, July 2020 issue Nature is healing “The sky is a more beautiful shade of blue, with cloud formations in the most exquisite pattern ever. The birds are chirping louder and more gleefully than ever before.” The sky is a more beautiful shade of blue, with cloud formations in the most exquisite pattern ever. The birds are chirping louder and more gleefully than ever before. Sometime back some news channels even claimed that endangered animals are now freely roaming on the highways and were also spotted in residential apartments. Pollution level has drastically dropped and vision is clearer too. Yet, if someone is not happy, it’s us, the humans. We are in shackles everywhere in the world today. The reason behind all these ‘positives’ around and the ‘negatives’ in our personal lives is but the same. A tiny virus that bare eyes cannot see, invaded our lives a few months back. The government actions to curb the pandemic that followed drove us indoors. And we have been locked in for almost 4 months, at least so in India. But future is uncertain There is no denying the fact that the future is pretty much uncertain now. While we do try to stay positive about a better world ahead of us, there are unending questions in our minds. Will the pandemic be over soon? Will it resurge? What will happen to the economy? Will I lose my job? Will my dear ones and I stay safe? Business owners have other worries: When can I resume operations? Will customers and suppliers continue to support me? Can I retain my employees? Can I pay their salaries? Will everything be the same as before? And for travel enthusiasts and foodies, there are additional concerns: Can we eat out again? Will we travel again like before? Many business houses are sitting idle, their doors shut, waiting for the green signal to open. Meanwhile they are trying to maintain their visibility with meaningful social messages. With the immediate future still being very unpredictable, we all are clinging on to hopes for discovery of the COVID-19 vaccine and keeping our fingers crossed in hope for good health of near and dear ones till then. That’s not too much to expect now. Light at the end of the tunnel “There is no denying the fact that the future is pretty much uncertain now. While we do try to stay positive about a better world ahead of us, there are unending questions in our minds.” In most countries of Europe, life is gradually going back to normal. They are starting to lift the lockdowns. Parks are beginning to get visitors, cafés are opening up, people are coming out of their homes for a little more than necessities, although not yet for luxury and in some parts, I am told, masks are not mandatory anymore. All these are still dreams for most of us in countries that are yet to reach the peak. But the good news is that the number of tests has increased, and death rate is low. The curve seems to be beginning to stoop downwards. Recovery rate is much higher than active cases. If things go on this way, we will probably be free again soon. But they say human beings have short memory. As soon as the pandemic is over and life is back to the old normal, the ‘life during lockdown’ will probably be forgotten. Our newly acquired skills and knowledge of health, hygiene, sanitising and social distancing, will be good for leisure-time talks only. I wish that doesn’t happen. Inspirational stories During the lockdown, life of people around the world went in for a toss. But while the pandemic and staying indoors have negatively affected many people, there are numerous others who have tried to use this time productively. Many found innovative ways to engage themselves and stay positive, while continuing to maintain social distancing and isolation wherever necessary. Many have discovered a secret talent, many devoted time to long lost hobbies, many others have used the time to take rest and watch movies and read books to heart’s content. To make up for the lost income, many have resorted to online businesses. People continued with celebration of special days. Only that the meaning of ‘staying in touch’ changed during this time, and ‘human touch’ completely lost its sheen. Over the last few months we have come across innumerable stories of beautiful life during lockdown. In Italy, neighbours played tennis from their windows and sang from their balconies to boost each other’s spirits. In Spain a couple got engaged at their balcony during the lockdown and neighbours joined in the celebration from their respective balconies. Staying fit during the lockdown can be difficult. A fitness programme was organised in London where residents joined the fitness class from their doorsteps. Teachers all over the world have resorted to online classes and thereby redefined the teacher-student relationship and teaching techniques. A former US Marine nurse in USA, turned 104 during the lockdown and her well-wishers and friends gathered outside her home to celebrate her birthday.

After more than three months of being in the COVID-19 era, it seems a lot has changed in our lives. There are new normals, like social distancing, only essential travels, offices operating at lesser capacity and promoting work from home, sanitizing hands frequently, wearing masks and so on. Message on the Burj Khalifa, Dubai, asking people to stay at home. “While the industries associated with many of the above, have been seeing their profits rise, there are others that have been hit hard by the pandemic." Three months into the pandemic After more than three months of being in the COVID-19 era, it seems a lot has changed in our lives. There are new normals, like social distancing, only essential travels, offices operating at lesser capacity and promoting work from home, sanitizing hands frequently, wearing masks (and now with designer masks becoming available, this new fashion statement is expected to be around for some time, good for us!), more online purchases than over the counter, eating home-cooked delicacies and not frequenting restaurants, living without malls and multiplexes, more reliance on two-wheelers than public transport and so on. While the industries associated with many of the above, have been seeing their profits rise, there are others that have been hit hard by the pandemic. Tourism is by far the worst hit, and it will take a long time to get back to where it was before the coronavirus invaded the world. With so much of losses due to zero tourism for more than a quarter, countless people have lost their jobs, many have lost their monies and many others have switched to other careers for survival. The Real Estate sector is extremely badly hit, so is the cosmetic industry. The work and clientele of professionals like Company Secretaries, Chartered Accountants, Lawyers etc. have also taken a toll. Many small establishments have shut their doors, resulting in a massive blow to the corporate and industrial sectors. The overall situation presents a very gloomy picture. But we MUST cling to hope and continue to take the preventive measures, help the government by obeying its directions, stand by the warriors like health workers, policemen, airport staff, sweepers, cleaners, delivery people and so on, maintain good health and high spirits and not be broken down by the situation. There’s light at the end of this tunnel too.

COVID-19 positive cases have drastically increased globally over the last few weeks. Initially it was being speculated at various levels that the corona virus would have lower impact on the Indian society. This had brought us some respite. But unfortunately these myths have since been proven wrong. As I write today, the total cases in India have already touched 20,000 while more than 640 people have died so far. Less than a month back the total cases were only 1,000 and deaths were hovering around 20s. So it is not a myth anymore, COVID-19 in India is a reality. Nevertheless, it is important to stay positive, and motivated enough to continue with the preventive measures. Total compliance with government orders of lockdown is required by all of us. There has never been a NOW OR NEVER situation like this before. We HAVE to stay indoors, maintain social distancing, take precautionary measures and go out only in cases of urgency and for buying essentials. “In these difficult times let us keep our spirits high. It is important to stay positive and make the best of whatever little we have. Remember, until before Corona virus hit the world, we all lacked time and good sleep! Now we have abundant time to do all that we ever wanted to do, and enough time to take rest and get rejuvenated. So now that we lack resources, entertainment, opportunities to travel and freedom to do whatever we want, we should not lose hope of regaining all these very soon.” Create Relevant Content We all understand how difficult it is to stay at home, locked within the four walls, with nothing to do but watch television (which can be so depressing during this pandemic), or spend time on the social media. For those working from home at the moment, the job is all the more demanding as one has to now balance both office pressure and household work. For those with itchy feet, it is like stopping to live, as travel is synonymous with life for them. Only about one month back I remember enthusiastic travellers were still planning trips, buying tickets and leaving homes for solo travel. They were not taking the COVID-19 so seriously and we all actually hoped that the impact of the pandemic would be much lesser in India, due to various reasons like warm weather, BCG vaccines and so on. Unfortunately, the world went for a toss suddenly thereafter, and nobody is talking about travel at all anymore. In these difficult times let us keep our spirits high. It is important to stay positive and make the best of whatever little we have. Remember, until before Corona virus hit the world, we all lacked time and good sleep! Now we have abundant time to do all that we ever wanted to do, and enough time to take rest and get rejuvenated. So now that we lack resources, entertainment, opportunities to travel and freedom to do whatever we want, we should not lose hope of regaining all these very soon. And when we get them back, we should not regret not having paid due respect to the free time we had during the lockdown. So let’s use the abundant time wisely. How about learning a language? It can be of great help in your future travels. For those who cannot go out to see the world during the lockdown, a good way of seeing places is through movies and books. They can transport us, for some hours or days, to an altogether different place. This might give one the urge to try newer places when the world is open to visitors and travellers are not in shakles anymore. In these times of unprecedented crisis, let us pray together that things get better the soonest possible and the world is a great place to live and move around freely.

The whys and hows These are difficult times for sure; people are finding it hard to remain positive with COVID-19 positive cases surging globally every day. While we in India are still going slow, from various quarters a sudden rise in cases is also being speculated. But some experts are also hoping that the impact of the Coronavirus will be low in India. Only time will be able to tell what actually happens. But till then, it is important to stay positive, and motivated enough to continue with the preventive measures. While the immediate risk of being exposed to this virus through community spread is still low and is being studied, it is important to take precautions. If the virus outbreak expands, the country will be at the greatest of all risks it has ever been exposed to. A 100% compliance with government orders of lockdown is required by all of us. So let us stay indoors, resolving to go out only in case of urgency and buying essentials. Over the last few days I have been reading a lot about pandemics, viruses etc. From the studies of various scholarly and research documents, I tried to sum up the pandemic, its causes, treatment and impacts. I would like to put it here for the benefit and consideration of readers. Pandemics of respiratory disease like the current one, follow certain progression phases. They begin with investigation phase, is followed by recognition phase, then initiation phase, and then the most dreaded acceleration phases when the peak of illnesses is reached. The next phase is the deceleration phase, when there is a decline in positive cases. One may note that at any point of time different countries can be in different phases of the pandemic, and it is also possible that different parts of the same country are in different phases of a pandemic. “There is no denying the fact that with no confirmed cure at the moment, we all are at risk now. However the biggest threat of the virus is now on aged people and those with underlying serious chronic medical conditions like Heart disease, Diabetes, Arthritis and Lung disease and the Cancer survivors...” So what is a pandemic? A pandemic is a global outbreak of disease that happens when a new virus emerges to infect people and spreads between people. Because there is little to no pre-existing immunity against the new virus, it gradually spreads worldwide. Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that are commonly found in different species of animals. On rare occasions the animal coronavirus infects people and then spreads between people. The earlier such coronaviruses discovered were MERS-CoV and SARS-CoV, and the latest one, a new variety, has been named SARS-CoV-2 or Novel Coronavirus. All these three viruses have their origins in bats. There is no denying the fact that with no confirmed cure at the moment, we all are at risk now. However the biggest threat of the virus is now on aged people and those with underlying serious chronic medical conditions like Heart disease, Diabetes, Arthritis and Lung disease and the Cancer survivors. If you are healthy, the virus may not really affect you as your immune system can fight with it, but the elders or diseased ones at home may be prone to be impacted and you may end up being the carrier of the virus to them. None of us would like to do that, I am sure. Hence, it is all the more important to stay at home, maintain social distancing, take precautionary measures.