Look At The Bright Side!

I have been waiting for the day when the world will be so scared of me that they won’t even dare to leave their homes without wearing a mask or hand sanitizers. If only I had control over their perspectives and thoughts, I would have declared myself as a dictator. A dictator every human being must be scared of.

The story takes place in New Delhi, India. The Bhardwaj family pictured the other side of the coin. This is the reason why, they and many other people who heard them are untouched by me and my closest friend, Death.

On 19th March 2020, Gayatri, all covered in mud, entered her house. Her sister, Nandini, had kept some biscuits and a glass of milk on the table. “I am home, Nandini.” said Gayatri, leaving her shoes near the sofa. She started eating the biscuits and drinking milk. She switched on the televisions and started watching the cricket match.

Gayatri’s parents entered the house, and seeing them, Gayatri jumped of joy from the sofa and hugged both of them. Hearing all the hustle-bustle, Nandini came out of the room. She gave a sarcastic smile to her parents and said “Did anyone of you washed your hands?” “No” all of them replied.

All of them went to the washroom, washed their hands and faces and changed their clothes.

Just a few minutes, I thought and I would have rested in your coughs.

Mr. Bhardwaj came out of his room and changed the channel. “Why news, Papa?” asked Gayatri moaning.

“Gayatri, today, at 8:00 p.m. our Prime minister will be addressing our nation.” replied Mr. Bhardwaj. “And look, it is 8:00 p.m. already.”

Even I was avid to learn what the Indian Prime Minister was willing to tell.

‘The entire country will be under lockdown for next twenty-one days.’

There was a chaos among my friends. ‘So early?’ I spoke. ‘But we have hardly executed our plan A.’

However, there was a sigh of relief among human beings. Days passed by and children were stuck at home, crying and telling their family members ‘All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.’ Gayatri was one of them. She loved to play cricket but now, due to pandemic, she was stuck at home and had no other option but studying. After few months, Mr. and Mrs. Bhardwaj started going to their respective offices.

At the time of dinner, also called ‘the family time’ by Gayatri, Mr. Bhardwaj discussed an incident that occurred in his office.

“Today, Mr. Dusajle and Mr. Arora told me that they were depressed due to pandemic. They found that pandemic has ruined them financially, and mentally.” Mr. Bhardwaj looked down in the mouth and continued with a lump in the throat “Mrs. Khandelwal further added that her husband might lose his job which might become a financial burden for them.”

“I agree” said Mrs. Bhardwaj “People are facing financial, mental and other problems. But we need to remember that a canopy of light passes even through a forest thickly covered with leaves.”

“Right, remember what J.K. Rowling said in one of the Harry Potter books?” said Nandini. “Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times. Only when one remembers to turn on the light.”

“So, what is the light here, Papa?” asked Gayatri who was now observing a change in herself that instead of jumping for answers, she has become a good listener.

“See it for yourself, Gayatri.” Said Mr. Bhardwaj. “Haven’t you noticed what a good listener you have become since the lockdown?”

“Your father is right, Gayatri.” Said Mrs. Bhardwaj. “Look at your sister. She didn’t like reading novels earlier but now; she reads almost all day along.”

“Right, kids have inculcated so many new habits and learned so many new skills.” Said Mr. Bhardwaj. “I saw Nandini singing the other day and Gayatri playing the piano we gifted her almost four years ago.”

“And don’t you like it that now, due to lockdown, your grandparents have stated living the next door.” Said Mrs. Bhardwaj.

“Right, family time is the best memories I could ever treasure.” Said Nandini.

“But Mumma, Mr. Arora, Mr. Dusajle and Mrs. Khandelwal’s problem is valid too. What about them and daily wage workers? The pandemic was out of blue for them and now, they have so many problems they have to deal with.” Said Gayatri.

“The pandemic was out of blue for every Earthian.” Said Mrs. Bhardwaj “Every problem that you are dealing with at the present seems to be difficult. I am not saying that any of the employees worry is wrong, but, if you learn to make the correct decisions at that point of life and learn to adjust with the change, you can always look at the bright side.”

“Also, people who have a positive attitude towards life, even if they are tested positive for COVID shall have no harm.” Said Papa.

“Due to pandemic, we have learnt a very important lesson that mother nature must be respected.” Said Nandini.

This conversation made me realize that I have severely underestimated the humans. I never thought that there was something good in pandemic. But I cannot spill the beans and let humans learn it, or-else, they might get immune to us. I decided to that I will not break the zeal of my friends and thus asked them to be cautious without letting them learn about this conversation. But new ideas travel fast. People are learning about ‘new normal’ and importance of positive attitude. It is difficult to break their bond over such topics. We are out of ideas. Seeing this, we are almost at the verge of giving up in many countries. Sadly, I must conclude by saying, that we… we are about to lose.

THE END