Month: April 2020

The streets are 80% less crowded, only few essential shops are open and a lot of stray animals are being seen around everywhere. The lockdown 2.0 has currently gripped the entire nation.

It has been really strange, this lockdown scenario which has been prevalent in the last month or so. I don’t think anyone in today’s generation would ever have imagined – much less follow – not going to pubs, not having weekend parties, not going to movies; and these activities are just the tip of the iceberg. There has been a drastic reduction in cool Insta/ Facebook stories, no pictures of nomadic traveling by the hippies which gets us all jealous of being stuck in office-family-kids-responsibilities routine. I don’t think we have ever been this unified, seeing as we all are facing the same uncertainties, anxieties and fear in the current pandemic of COVID-19.

While on the one hand, we all, meaning the highly evolved, very intelligent species of Homo sapiens are lamenting this turn of events; Mother Earth on the other hand is celebrating. Less pollution, more wildlife, higher visibility, cleaner rivers and many other such stories of miracles are cropping up on our news channels. I personally feel that Mother Earth has waged a war against us humans, irrespective of religion, boundaries and countries; and it looks like she intends to win this war. All that we can do right now is take a step back, realise that the world is much bigger than us and our “man made issues” and the real need of the hour is to be grateful for all the resources provided by nature.

Having said that, I feel there might be a silver lining hidden in this ordeal. Over the last few weeks, majority of the people throughout the world have been able to spend an enormous amount of time with their families, something that would not have been possible under normal circumstances. Where we had become so habituated to ignoring any personal issues by running behind office work and our careers, it is now ironic that everyone is being forced to communicate and learn to live harmoniously. There is no place to escape anymore, and the only place we can go is inside our own head to improve ourselves through constant reflections. In a way, we have unknowingly been given a wonderful opportunity for personal progress. Let us all pledge ourselves to create a better world in future through all the lessons learnt today.

On a lighter note, let us also utilise this time to bring back our childhood innocence, play fun games, bond with each other and enjoy this vacation. As we are all aware, change is the only constant in life and in time this too shall pass.

STAY SAFE EVERYONE! ✌🏼

You wake up in the morning to the blaring sound of your alarm. You snooze it, hoping to get few more minutes of bliss and paradise before you wake up to the mundane routine and reality of life. Waking up, the first thing you need is probably a cup of coffee or tea to jolt your senses and open your eyes.
That is how my day started. Like any other day, I woke up after a lengthy fight with my alarm where eventually my alarm won. I washed my face, and opened my front door to bright sunshine and to soak up some vitamin D. The sun was also still waking up and rising slowly, making me feel that we humans might not be the only beings who would wish a few more minutes of bliss. That is when I heard the sound which was literally music to my ears. “Woof!” It was Appu, a small puppy which was a recent addition to my neighbor’s family. I think it might be rare for any person in this world to remain unaffected by either a puppy or a baby.
“Woof!” came the call again. And it didn’t matter that I had to get ready for office, cook, do the dishes or clean up things. It all had to absolutely wait as I yielded to the call of the little ball of fur. I think they are completely aware of the effect they have on us, and use their charms to get everything that they want accomplished. As I ran towards the small bundle of energy, he got so excited that he began jumping and woofing and settled only after I started petting and loving him.
There’s something about being around a dog which brings immense pleasure to your state of mind. As I was petting Appu, tickling the underside of his belly- he rolled over with all his paws in air, tongue out and waiting for me to scratch his belly. He looked like he was in heaven. That small act was all it took to make him happy and he started playfully biting and jumping around. A little bit of love, absolute focus and some dedicated time was all he cared about. In return, he gave me his absolute attention and heaped me with his puppy love.
Needless to say- fifteen minutes of unconditional love later, I was refreshed beyond my imagination. Appu went on to seek more love and pampering from other kids in the neighborhood and they indulged him like a prince. For me though, those fifteen minutes got me through every small issue in the day with a smile on my face. I kept thinking about those fifteen minutes throughout the day and suddenly realized that it was like my morning dose of happiness.
Appu would probably never understand his significance in others life, but I believe every person might be having his or her own individual morning dose of happiness. It might be Yoga, jogging, laughter club, reading newspaper and for some people it might even be cooking or cleaning. Now imagine waking up and getting a cup of morning dose of happiness instead of your cup of coffee or tea. I guarantee you that you would be hooked to it for the rest of your life.

P.S. this article has been written long before the current lockdown situation in India..