The Pursuit of Goodness

In April 2021 we landed up in the same situation that we were in 2020; the Lockdown was back. An unprecedented second wave paused our lives yet again. We are in the second month of lockdown today and many are living in a state of stress, anxiety, confusion, fear and worry.

At the same time, there are also a lot of good things happening during the lockdown. As we are nearing an unlocking, let us discuss these good points and how we can carry them forward.

Survival of the Fittest: There are some things money can’t buy, said the master card tagline. The pandemic gave us a crystal clear message that good health is something that cannot be achieved in few days or cannot be purchased using a money card. We realized that we should take care of our health on daily basis instead of panicking at the last moment and ending up chewing zinc and lime tablets. Maintaining good health should be a daily activity.

You are What You Eat: ‘Immunity’ was the most searched word on the internet in the past few months as everyone wanted to build immunity in record time. The world came to know that most of the Indian foods and spices have an immunity-boosting superpower. It’s high time that we value our Indian food and continue eating Desi and Healthy.

Walk and Shop: No vehicles allowed on the road said the new lockdown guidelines and people were compelled to walk and shop from the nearby local shops and small vendors. Not just it saved some fuel and pollution but knowingly or unknowingly we helped many small stores get good business and supported them when it was needed the most. Even after the lockdown let’s continue to Walk-N-Shop and continue to bring smiles on their faces.

Support Local: Be it the floods of 2019 or the first wave in 2020 or the second wave in 2021, it was always and ONLY the local people who came forward to help their fellow citizens. Grocery kits, free food, water, ambulance, oxygen cylinders, concentrators, medicines were distributed in abundance by our own local people. These are local people running grocery stores, bakery, Kirana shop, clothing store, or any other shop to make a living.

But when our turn comes to support them, we turn our back towards these locals and stand in a long queue of the big marts offering discounts to make them richer by another billion. Instead, let the economy play within the city and let us show the world that Belagavi has learned its lesson and has decided to support locals in real and not just on FB and insta.

Gender Equality: From cooking dishes in the kitchen to washing vessels, from mopping floors to babysitting, from drying clothes to parenting, many couples divided the household chores amongst themselves during the lockdown. As per the CMIE data, the gender gap in average hours spent on domestic work decreased during the lockdown. For people who have not started sharing the chores yet, it’s never too late to break stereotypes and start something good.

Ghar Wapasi: Home is where the heart is. Many Belgaumites working in metros are back to their hometown, thanks to work from home or WFH as they call it. Many of them are in a state of nostalgia riding through the streets or finding their old clothes in the wardrobes. Some have analyzed their growth potentials and have decided to shift here permanently. Welcome back friends, it’s not just your parents but your hometown needs you too.

Nature Calling: The world is healing, we are the virus. We all shared images on social media about how nature is giving us back our plastic karma in the form of PPE kits or making us struggle for oxygen the way we mercilessly cut the trees. Saying no to plastic, planting saplings, waste composting, saving water, recycling paper are some of our duties towards Nature and we need to do on daily basis, wholeheartedly.

Life is Short: Many were not even able to see the face of their loved ones or say a final goodbye or hug for the last time to confess how much they loved them. The pandemic taught us that life is very short to have any grudges, hatred, or dislike for anybody. Forgive, forget and waste no time in letting your loved ones know how much they mean to you.

Family and Friends: To know the importance of family ask the one who was stranded far away from home due to a sudden lockdown, or to know the value of a friend ask the one who made several phone calls to find a hospital bed or a Remdisivir dose for his friend in an emergency. Valuing family, friends, and relationships have been the strength of Indian culture and the pandemic has helped to strengthen this bonding.

Choti si Aasha: Minimalism is the new word in the market, Naya hai vaha. With minimum money in the pocket and with limited time for shopping, we realized how much less we really need to live a peaceful life. Branded clothes, jewelry, luxurious cars, exotic watches suddenly seemed so worthless. No competition, no show-off. On the contrary, comfortable clothing, home-cooked food, small house with a happy family seemed like a blessing. Happiness and material possessions have nothing to do with each other, is what we experienced lately.

We are the generation that has witnessed this pandemic; a lockdown of this scale was never experienced before. Let us continue all the good lessons we learned during the lockdown. The future generations will consider us fools or hypocrites if we ignore nature’s warnings and continue being selfish. After many years, we are going to tell stories of lockdown to our kids and grandchildren and let us make sure they feel proud about what we did.