#COVID-19 and My 2020

I am a researcher at the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IITK), a premier research institution in India. For the past two years, I have not visited my home-state Kerala so that I could spend more time on my studies. I believed that I could finish writing my research thesis by March 2020 and then visit Kerala. My wife and I had made a meticulous to-do list for this vacation. We planned it in April. We booked flight tickets- to and fro. We informed family. Since our hospital visits are generally during vacation, we reserved hospital appointments too.

But things did not pan out quite as we expected. 2020 began with a severe chest infection that lasted over a month which slowed down my work. Then came the Corona Virus attack. One of my research papers was accepted by a conference in the USA, and I was to present the paper on the 26th of March 2020. Due to the virus' widespread threat, I had to cancel my flight tickets and accommodation which I reserved well ahead in time. Luckily, my Air bnb host was a kind soul, and I got a full refund. But I lost 10% of my flight reservation amount. I do not earn much, so I lost much.

Then came the real strike of the virus. In view of the spread of the virus-caused disease COVID-19, IITK decided to suspend all academic activity and send all hostel-residing students home in short notice. Since we were a family with a two-room house on campus, we were not required to leave, but were free to leave if we thought it was better to leave. Since we DID NOT trust the healthcare facilities in Uttar Pradesh AT ALL, we decided to leave. This meant that we had to cancel our flight tickets for our planned vacation in April which would again be a huge loss for my already shallow pocket. But we had to do it. There was no other way.

The decision was made on the 17th of March. We booked flights on the same day, and flew the next morning to Trivandrum. On 18th, we had a connection flight from Lucknow airport to Hyderabad airport to Trivandrum domestic airport. Except in Trivandrum, there was no thermal screening or any kind of warnings or precaution. It was business as usual. But at Trivandrum airport, our temperatures were recorded, and we had to fill in a form declaring our travel history and contact information. We were given instructions to stay in home quarantine for 14 days, and emergency contact information was given as a pamphlet. We felt proud of our state, and surely safe!

After we reached home, we stayed in a room and had minimal contact with the family. What suffered was my work. It has been ten days since we entered quarantine. I was not able to write more than two paragraphs of my thesis. Yes, I read a few pages, wrote a few stories and updated this blog. But my work is stalled. I am worried of my thesis, my career and life after COVID-19. There is going to be an economic recession, and I do not know how we would find a job to survive. We may be able to manage for a few months without income, but beyond that its a void.

Future is uncertain. But that doesn't make me a crybaby. I won't stop trying to write. I will positively try to finish my thesis before the lock-down is over. There is life after COVID-19, and I do not want to be unprepared. I am trying to be happy, cheerful and optimistic because, whatever happens, this sweet life is worth living. 

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Stay home, stay safe, stay childlike during #COVID_19 Lock_Down

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If you are bored of being home during the #COVID_19 lock-down, read how interesting my nearly locked_down childhood was.

Depending on which generation we belong to, we took up different activities in our childhood. I can speak for kids of the 80s. I believe that the 80s were a wonderful time to grow up in Keralam. People were not stuck to small phone screens. TVs were available for entertainment. There were a number of serialized and other programmes on Doordarshan channel we used to wait for. For example, Alif Laila, Chithrageetham, the Sunday movie, etc. But TV was not the centre of our lives. 

We used to play in the mud. We played football at school (cricket had not destroyed other games then). We also used to play the police and thief during loo and lunch breaks. In my school we were a 'Naalvar Sangham': a fantastic four. Michael, Rajesh and Shinto were already in that school when I joined them as the fourth. We had our own secret code language with its own script to exchange notes, our own special table football game played using little paper balls and pen-caps, our own revenge plans to punish extremely arrogant teachers, our own study techniques that made us the top scoring students in the class. We enjoyed school because we were offline friends. 

By the time we were in 10th class, landline telephones were installed in our homes, so we could clear our doubts or pretend to be a police officer when calling each other. The rest was offline. We visited each others' homes to study and play. Weekends were fun because we visited each other and made extensive plans to plunder each other's homes, or the local post office just for fun. Our adventures included climbing trees, playing on the terrace, running errands, doing shopping for families, sharing stories we read, etc. It was truly fun. I must still have a few transcripts of our secret code language letters we have exchanged, somewhere at home. 

Life at my own home was fun. By the age of 14, I used to get up at 5 am everyday to study. We did not have many rooms, so when I switched on the light to study, my sisters would cover their heads not to get disturbed. I used to help my family in managing daily affairs. For example, it was my duty to carry milk from home to the local co-operative society for sale. We used to sell 4 litres every day. I would then come back and have a bath. All six of us at home shared a single bathroom facility. So we had to kind of schedule our business. All 5 of us had to leave at different times: father at 9.30 am to his bank, sister and brother at 7.45 to their respective colleges, me and younger sister at 9. 45 to our schools. After school, I had to help my mother to cut, collect and carry grass for the cows. It used to be a big task. We children washed our own clothes ever since our mother developed a spine problem. 

There was more. Collecting cocoa for sale, taking care of rubber sheets when they were dry, counting and collecting coconuts when they are plucked, shooing off crows when coconuts are laid out to dry, and watering our flower plants were some of the extra duties. But the main duty of all of us was drawing water from the well. Depending on the season, we used different sources of water. In monsoon, we used the well that was the closest to hour home. By the end of March, this well would dry up, so we would use the second well that was a little farther. When that too dried up, we had to walk a kilometer uphill in the night to collect water in all possible pots and jars from a common source in the village. We would wait in line for our turn for hours. This was years before we could transport water in takers. When water was scarce in peak summer, we had to limit its use. I remember washing my body in a mug or two of water! We were a lovely bunch of people that way. 

I had picked up the hobby of working on electronics from my elder brother by the time I was in high school. Together, we used to work on hobby projects like radios and repair work. I still have my skill. I remember making an FM fadio in a plastic bucket, a wireless microphone to work with the radio to be used for our programmes, and repairing tape recorders and even minor complaints of televisions. My life at home has helped me to pick up other skills like electrical work, plumbing, cooking, cleaning, packing, gardening, etc. I also learned how to give a hair cut.

Above all, I learned the habit of reading from home. There were hundreds of books and magazines at home. We had subscribed to Reader's Digest, India Today, Balarama, Sputnik, and even Manorama weekly! I remember reading a collection of 100 abridged world classics (called Viswa Sahitya Maala) before I was in high school. I read Malayalam and English. Magazines, newspapers and books. My world expanded beyond the limits of my village, state and country. The desire to read never left me. 

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So, even if times have changed, there is a lot to do at home. We can read, garden, farm, clean, cook, talk and have fun while quarantined at home. 

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In a way, this lock-down season is for our welfare. It has helped the world's air quality to improve. Animals are less afraid and have more spaces for themselves. Humans can sit at home and connect with their families, re-live memories, heal wounds and become healthy. We get to go back to our sweet childhoods. Therefore, Stay home, Stay safe, and Stay childlike.

Why we will survive Corona Virus Disease - 2019

Corona Virus Disease-2019 or COVID-19 has stromed into our lives within a span of just three months. It has affected more than half of the world's population. Till this evening (26-03-2020), COVID-19 has taken 22,166 lives, and has infected 491,307 people (Data from here). It has affected most of the countries on planet Earth. Countries like Italy, China, USA, Spain, Germany and Iran are currently reeling with the infection while trying to contain its spread. People are dying. Europe and USA don't even have sufficient number of ventilator facilities in hospitals to handle patients. India went into a complete lock-down for 21 days. Economy is badly affected.

Yes, the situation is bad. But this is not the end of the world. What is beautiful about humankind is that we know that there is life after every disaster we face. We have seen many plagues in the past. We faced two major world wars in the last century. We faced tsunami. We swam over floods and won against earthquakes and droughts. In every disaster, we lost our dear ones. We wept over the loss of lives and wealth. But we did not think that life came to an end. After each disaster, we stood up and said, 'this is not the end, but a new beginning'. We never failed. This time too, we will not fail. Why?

Have you not read news reports about medical professionals-doctors, nurses, lab technicians, sanitary professionals- across the world spend close to 24 hours in critical care facilities risking their own lives? They are our role models. They face danger every moment, but are committed to curing each patient they take care of.

Have you not seen ambulance drivers who shift patients from homes to hospitals, risking their own lives? They are committed to our survival.

Have you not read about volunteers who go around cities to find hungry people on the streets and feed them? They have empathy for the poor. They take action to help the needy.

Have you not seen the police force spending their days on the road to make sure that we stay indoors? They risk contacting the virus, just to make sure that we stay home and become healthy. They work tirelessly to save our lives.

Have you not seen (at least a few) responsible political leaders and administrators who spend their days and nights to take good decisions for us? They work tirelessly to save lives.

Have you not seen your parents/caretakers doing everything to bring food to your table, in spite of every difficulty they face? They love us more than themselves.

We may never know the names of the doctors, nurses, lab staff, sanitary staff, health workers, ambulance drivers, volunteers, police persons, leaders and administrators who saved us. We may never know how many people died of this disease. We may never know how we survived. But we know that we are safe because many people made the right decisions at the right time for us. These right decisions come from the human desire and instinct to survive and flourish. 

We are all equally susceptible to infection. The amount of money in our hands does not matter. Number of cars we own does not matter. Our jobs and positions do not matter. In a crisis like this, everyone is equally susceptible. What matters is that we love our neighbours. That we care for each other. That we feed a hungry person. That we do not hoard while our neighbour starves. That we share what we have. That we make sure we do not cause the infection to spread. That we remain human beings.

That is why we as a species have survived so far. That is why we as a species will survive COVID-19 too. All we need to do is to stay indoors, maintain personal hygiene, wash hands, have healty food and healthy thoughts and be optimistic. All we need to to is not to lose hope. All we need to do is to spread happiness in these dark times. This is not the end. There is life after COVID-19. We shall overcome. We definitely shall overcome!

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Little Kitty’s Brother

Little Kitty’s younger brother’s name is Bob. He likes to paint and does so almost all day, while Little Kitty hates drawing.

One day, there was a quiz competition in Little Kitty’s school. She won the first prize and got a set of colour pencils as gift. When Bob saw the colour pencils, he asked if he could draw with them. but Little Kitty said, “No! I got them as a gift. I will not give them to you.”
Bob started crying. He told his mom: “Mom, she hates painting, but doesn’t give those pencils to me. eeh eeh…”

Mom told Bob: “Oh my dear baby, why do you cry? Those colour pencils are not yours. They are Little Kitty’s pencils. She got them as a prize. If she doesn’t want to give, she doesn’t have to give them to anyone.”

Then mom said to Little Kitty: “Little Kitty, those pencils are yours. You won them. But since you hate drawing and painting, will you use them? Bob is your brother. There is nothing wrong in giving some pencils to him. I will not force you. But sharing makes you a better person.”

Mom went back to reading. Hearing what she said, Bob stopped crying. Little Kitty thought for a while and gave half of her colour pencils to Bob and said, “Bob, I’m sorry. Please use these pencils.”

Bob said, “Thank you, sister. I am sorry too. I should not have cried to have your pencils.”
They smiled and embraced each other. Bob drew many pictures with those pencils and Little Kitty appreciated them a lot.

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Little Kitty and the Butterfly

One day, Little Kitty was walking around the farm when it saw a beautiful red and black butterfly sitting on a coconut tree. Little Kitty jumped toward the butterfly with open paws and raised tail to catch it. But the butterfly casually flew up a few inches and sat peacefully. Little Kitty’s ego was hurt.

She asked the butterfly, “I am much bigger than you. How can you ignore and insult me like this?”

The butterfly said, “Little Kitty, it doesn’t matter how big or small we are. What matters is how well we use our talents to win this world.”

Little Kitty didn’t understand a word.

The butterfly continued, “If you try to fly, you will fail. In the same way, if I try to catch rats, I will fail too. Do you understand?”

Little Kitty smiled in humility and said, “Yes butterfly, I understand now. And sorry friend, I shall mind my business from now on.”

Then, Little Kitty went her way, and the butterfly flew towards flowers. 

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The Drummer Girl

Once there lived a little girl named Lizzy. She dreamed of becoming a drummer and drummed on her table every day. But her parents wanted her to become a scientist. This made her sad. She prayed hard so she could become a drummer.

One day while Lizzy was playing in the park with her friends, a vendor selling small drums came that way. She wished deeply to buy a drum, but her parents didn’t give her the money. Lizzy stood close to the vendor and watched him play it. He sold a few drums to some children there. He saw Lizzy’s desire to have a drum in her eyes. So he played a wonderful piece for her on his drum. Lizzy was overwhelmed with joy, and jumped up and down clapping her hands.

Seeing this, the drum vendor gave a drum to her and asked her to play a piece. Lizzy was overjoyed. She took the drum in wonder and played one of the rhythms she had been practicing on her table. She played with such passion that the drum vendor and everyone who listened were filled with awe. When she finished, there were cheers and a long round of applaus.

Drummer Girl (Picture from HERE)

Then, from behind the crowd, her parents came forward and embraced her in amazement. They told her, “you play like a professional! We are sorry we denied you your dream. Now on, we think you should pursue your dream.” Lizzy’s eyes welled up hearing this.

The drum vendor told her, “Lizzy, you have real talent. Keep that drum and practice every day. I will come back next year to listen to you.” Lizzy couldn’t believe her ears! That day onward, she practiced every day on her drum and went on to become one of the best drummers in the land. Next year when the drum vendor revisited her village, she was already known as ‘The Drummer Girl’.