Many of us in our life time would have faced crisis in some form or the other! Most are sudden and one is forced to deal with it first hand. And then there are some like COVID-19 which is creeping and creepy but rarely do we see a crisis as universal as this. As Meera Rajagopalan describes here, all seemed well and COVID was someone else's problem till it became yours and mine. While each of us have our unique battles to fight during these times, each of us also come to a state of acceptance and start looking at positive side of things.
It is 10.30 PM on 3rd February 2020, and I have just booked
my cab to take me to Kempegowda International Airport. My flight is at 2 AM to
Austin. I reach the airport well ahead of time, complete the regular
formalities and reach gate 22 - ready to board the flight. As I wait, I read
about a dangerous virus spreading in China. I read that people are being asked
to wear masks and that the U.S. has banned travelers from China. I breathe a
sigh of relief that flights from India are allowed to fly to the States and
that soon, I will see my husband and the kids.
Once inside the flight, I take my seat and make myself
comfortable. My mind instantly wanders to my mental checklist- did I complete
all the doctor visits for my parents? Have the electricity cheques been handed
over to my dad? Have I bought my parents all their necessary medication? My
mind rests momentarily knowing that every task has been completed, but it
quickly wanders to my older daughter and I begin writing another checklist of to-dos for
the upcoming wedding.
During my layover in Paris, I eat my favorite chocolate croissant
and have a cup of coffee. When I arrive at my gate, I see a long queue of
people wearing masks and a young lady approaches me. She asks me if I have traveled
to China recently and simultaneously checks my passport. She goes on to check
my temperature as well. I see the airport personal gather few Asian travelers
to a corner and do more screening and for the first time in this journey, a
sense of fear creeps up. I can feel my stomach churn and a million butterflies
fluttering inside of me. I am reminded of my past experiences travelling in
dangerous times. In 1991 when I travelled alone and pregnant during the Gulf
war, in 2004 when I and my husband narrowly missed the Indian Ocean earthquake and
tsunami, and in 2015 when we fled violent riots in Greece. Little did I know
that this virus would turn into a pandemic with severe consequences for months
to come!!!
My flight touches down on American soil and to my relief,
the scene is not that bad. I arrive home extremely happy. The next two weeks pass
by smoothly as my routine is packed with daily exercises, work, frequent visits
to the University of Texas, Austin to see my second daughter, and calling my parents to
hear them complain about their maid and cook.
Slowly but steadily the situation starts to change. The
virus has become severe and people are dying. Colleges across the U.S. are closing,
and children are asked to leave their dorms. The kids and parents are all in a
state or panic with international flights also closing down. I receive multiple
calls to check if I can host my daughter’s friends until things get better. I am
now making plans to host 8 international kids in our humble 3-bedroom
apartment. It is a herculean task helping the kids vacate their rooms. We have
to make multiple trips to dump stuff in our garage and return to the university
to vacate another room. A few of the kids manage to fly to India and Middle
East by purchasing tickets at a premium and a few continue to stay with us. The
next few weeks I am focused on cooking and feeding my new extended family.
Things start worsening and the death rate increases. My
work-related trips to California and New York also have to be cancelled. New
York is a death city now. COVID is no longer a distant reality and has started
affecting people near and dear - a colleague’s father and father-in-law have
died in Italy, a friend’s brother in New Jersey and my older daughter's friends have
tested positive and are battling high fevers. Fear starts engulfing me as I
think about our family scattered across the globe, my parents all alone with
little help, and the planned wedding and
how things will work out.
The stock markets start to tumble and some of the
capitalistic employers start laying people off! When will the world realize
that it needs to move away from pure capitalistic greed? It is sickening that
large corporate giants who have no shame in making billions of dollars and
hardly paying their share of taxes also have no hesitation in shedding their
employees and seeking government bailouts at the first sign of trouble! What
will the new world order look like once we recover from this? Will we be entering a recession like 1990?
What will the future be for our kids? How long will it take to get the economy
back on track? When will international flights operate and when will I be able
to go home? So many questions with no answers.
While my mind is wandering, the phone rings. It is our routine
zoom conference call with the kids, my patents, husband and myself. My mother is no
longer complaining about the maid and cook but talking highly of our Prime
Minister and his actions to curtail COVID-19. Although this lock down has been a rough ride for many of us,
it surely has taught me to slow down, relax and value the simple things in life
even more. I am learning to enjoy every day as it comes - waking up late with no
fixed schedule. The most challenging part of my day is deciding which movie or TV show to watch. This lock down has been an eye opening experience for me and I
have realized how privileged I am compared to many in the world - I am so
grateful.
I am a strong believer that nothing in life is permanent
and this phase shall pass and we will soon hear the good news that a vaccine
for COVID-19 is available . I remain optimistic everyday that we will emerge
victorious and become stronger than ever before!
- Meera Rajagopalan
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