A Quarantine Story

“Oops”! I heard my son’s voice and as I turned behind to investigate the matter, I found him starring down at the floor where he just dropped his lemonade Popsicle; my recent lock down experiment. With a deep sigh I accompanied him in looking the deliquescent ice pop, melting every other second and then turned to a melt-water in no time. This few seconds’ observation took me to my life’s journey.

Ready to go to the school, where an unstoppable competition of getting the highest marks was always on every student’s nerve, snatching our childhood and innocence. Yes, I do remember that we all had to join that race either willingly or unwillingly that ruined all our school days joy.

Promoting to a college life didn’t change the scenario even. The same challenge of getting the highest GPA followed us… the innocent souls. Even, during the university days we continued to work hard tirelessly specially during the research and thesis period, just to get a good internship offer that can open the door for future opportunities. Uh! Future opportunities, that we had to earn at the cost of our present life means no fun… no time for your own self and yes, no time for any relation.

After this entire struggle, finally it was time to enter into a new world of professional life and luckily I got my dream job. But professional life is never a piece of cake even if you are doing a job of your own choice. And you know what? As the journey continued… I got used to of keeping “Others” happy, always thinking what “Others will think or feel if I would do this or do that. Thinking, wearing, eating, drinking and doing almost everything… not to keep my own self happy but to impress “Others”… completely forgetting friends, family and “me” in this race of being successful.

Even my marriage and then becoming a mother of a son failed to change my mind set. I kept on thinking of making more money, driving a branded car, dining inn for branded food, sending my child to the school having a well known brand name, living a branded life, whether I had to work 24/7 for this, I was ready. I do admit at this point that I might be a good professional but was a complete failure as a human being, as daughter, as a wife and as a mother.

And then the world entered to 2020…a year, full of challenges. As the Covid-19 pandemic started to capture the world, the world economy started to fall; the job market of the entire world got crashed. Many “branded” companies got bankrupt including the company where I was being employed since twenty years. Like many others, one morning, I too got a suspension letter that clearly quoted that my services are no more required for the company. I was immediately fired from that company in which I gave my loyal services for twenty golden years. My heart started to sink and my eyes were ready to shower down the tears. As I reached home devastated, my family, after knowing the whole situation stepped forward to comfort me. I can never forget how my son got over joyed by this news and shouted in great amazement with his sparkling eyes, “Hurrah! Mom would be home all the time with me”.  The overwhelming gesture of my family and the way they embraced this sudden disastrous news taught me the value of a family. That day I learned what it means to have a home, a family. No one was worrying for the earnings I just lost, but all were happy to have “me” back. Time taught me too to enjoy this “me” back in my life. At last, after so many years, I started to live a life for me and my family.

Nature has its own way of teaching us a lesson, a true lesson and of course there is no teacher better than nature itself. This quarantine life has changed many lives, positively or negatively. But, yes, it has changed my life in a positive way…yes you read it right; it has really brought positivism in my life. Now the life I am living is for me and my family and not for showing off to the so called “Others”. For the very first time in my life I have met “me”, and I am really enjoying the company…after all it’s not bad to be “myself”. This life at home taught me that money is not everything, at least not enough to buy true happiness. There are lot more important things than money, like relations, love and compassion and that too without any brands. Any one whether rich or poor can enjoy them for free and for the lifetime, but only on a condition of whatever you receive you have to return the same.

“Oh mom!” again the sad voice of my son pulled me into the present time where he was still in a shock for the loss of his favorite ice lolly. I felt if someone awoke me from a dream. I glanced back to my son, while wiping up the mess, with a calm smile on my face that served as a green signal for him to have another ice bar. He started jumping with great joy and ran to grab another. I stopped him and told him to wait until I would done with my cleaning so that we can enjoy the ice treat together while watching his best-loved cartoon movie. His precious expressions, after hearing my plan gave me the happiest feeling no brand can ever buy for anyone.

 Now, while having the best treat ever with my son…and yes my hubby joined us too in all that… I am thinking that maybe I am late but it’s better to be late than never. What if I didn’t get the chance to live my childhood, I can live my son’s childhood with him. I promised to myself that I will never ever ask for the marks from my son but rather I would ask him for his happiness. I will never let him to be a part of this useless rat race; rather he will learn to become compassionate, to be happy and to make others happy.