The year 2020 ~ or what we have seen of it so far ~ has been a very strange year indeed! 2020 is the year of the Staycation, the year of the most memes, and... oh yes!... the year of the pandemic! Please note, I will not be adding this year to my age because I didn’t use it!
I was highly doubtful that I could actually pin it down on something productive when an assignment to chronicle my COVID diary came about. Here is my valiant attempt at doing so.
The Coronavirus was a novel experience for most of us causing worry and a good measure of anxiety. 2020... being the year of the Rat... seriously had us hiding like rats scurrying out to build up our food stores and avoiding people at all costs – quite apropos, don’t you think?
My being an introvert through and through and the worst kind -- according to Myers Briggs; however, it allowed me to deal with the lockdown like a pro.
There were the odd moments when I was antsy and overwhelmed at having my kids and partner at home and in my face all the time; it was a bit much which needed some getting used to.
So, what did I learn?
For starters, WFH is my thing! I have never been more grateful to have work that allowed me to function 100% from home. Was it easy to adapt to? Absolutely, once I got a routine in place! It only took me 10 minutes to prepare for work and travel -- which meant that I had more time to do ME stuff. Roughly translated, it means I had more time for sleep... reading, and self-care routines!
Financial Discipline is another difficult lesson I learned. Online shopping was more appealing, and sheer boredom forced us online during the pandemic. Apart from the essentials, the allure of the glittering bells and whistles was almost too much to bear! The black holes of spending were analyzed with income being limited and excursions curtailed.
Family Time ~ We had plenty of this, which was gainfully spent! I was able to establish a routine for my kids... 6 & 11... and incorporate loads of boredom busters! During the day, they were occupied with activities so the adults were free to buckle down and work. In the evening, we brought out the board games and movies. We also went old-school watching “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” which had the kids in peals of laughter! Some evenings, we would just crank up the music real high and bust a move! We grew to appreciate different genres of music, and everyone had fun!
Exercise, however, was something I missed sorely. I am an enthusiastic yogi. For me, these sessions put me in a state of concentration, reduce stress... with the additional benefit of physical fitness. Missing my yoga sessions had me quite depressed -- and, in turn, this found me gazing longingly at the contents of my fridge a little too often. Boredom and depression eating did not help my cause! So, some Surya namaskars soon made me feel better, but I was peachy keen to get back to my yoga class.
Home Projects were a galore during these days, and mercifully so, because I had just moved to a new house. Unpacking and decluttering was a family project that soon had us settled in just one week into quarantine which was totally amazing!
Home Grown Produce was a fad during this time, which was gaining a lot of popularity during lockdown, alongside baking and making desserts. Not being the baking type, I was keen to see what I could do with the small patch of garden we have. There is a mango tree in my garden that was full of fruit and soon had the family out scaling the tree to pick the fruit. I was particularly keen on growing aloe vera! Aloe vera has many health benefits, including first aid, so I enthusiastically planted small plants in the trough. I was pleased with its progress... until our puppy decided that they were great for chewing on. My enthusiasm ended quite abruptly. A forlorn aloe sits alone battling for life.
The moral of this all -- I suppose -- is how do we spend our time wisely? On things we enjoy are people who matter! Would I want to relive the lockdown – probably not! But are there things I did during the lockdown that I carried through to post-lockdown – for sure! The extra time on hand was a gift – which had me appreciating my family and the life I had all the more.
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Written by Tatum De Souza
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