The Pandemic Blues

Gone are the times, of social gatherings, to meet to greet, to enjoy a meal. With the new trend of social distancing, even those few we call dear friends, we seldom see .

Gone are the days when life was simple, walking down the street or in the park, or a visit to the market place with its colourful wares, a sensorial delight. No fear of the jostling crowds, or the touch of a passerby, when each breath taken was careless, not the conscious effort of today.

To sit at the wayside cafe, in the late afternoons, savouring our favourite brew and the evening breeze, not a pastime to indulge in, anymore. When the unmasked were not our naked foe, but a friendly face, to exchange a wayward smile, or those sidelong glances .

With each new wave, with each new scare, we scurry down our rabbit hole. With the new familiar term ‘ quarantine’, we are often confined to our home. The musicals we enjoyed, the plays we frequented, are no longer conducted. With no cinemas or days at the mall, there is not much in the form of amusement. Now our weighty recreational decision being, should we watch Prime, Netflix or Disney.

Our travels restricted, those well curated family holidays, to remote, exotic destinations, or the excitement of traipsing out on a whim, for a casual weekend getaway, all belong to bygone days. Now we ask, should we take the car, or the bus, private transport or public, or is it prudent to just stay ?

Our qualification now a vaccine, our first line of defence with no guarantees but it matters whether it is single or double. Side effects are mild and negligible,they say, until you face the wrath of the occasional,unpredicted reaction. As many have now been jabbed, the outside world is marginally safe, while controversial debates still rage, on its efficacy.

Come rid us of this plague, we pray. Every day a new devastation we see. The closing of businesses, downing of shutters, the fall of empires the rise of new ones, jobs that are lost and crippling finances. Is it a crisis of the old in it’s new play, driving us through yet another disaster ?

Down the ages many a brutal war we fought, be it a pestilence or a deluge, a fiery eruption or a crashing meteor, our invincible spirit stood the test of time. We are made not for defeat, but to endure, to survive. To fearlessly conquer, each new destructive force. To reach forward for something better, something more beautiful.