The Pandemic Story
APRIL 2020
We are amidst a never imagined nationwide lockdown for a virus called COVID-19. Today is the 22nd day of the lockdown on 15th April, 2020 and there is still no legitimate date to when the panic and hysteria related to the virus will end. Everything has come down to a standstill as people protect themselves and their loved ones from this invisible mortal contagious virus. Roads have been swiped clean of vehicles, schools colleges offices markets factories all locked down, people at their survival modes, all prepared to do their best to not get infected by the morbid killing machine. People have locked themselves up in their own private spaces and suddenly the dynamics of a lifestyle has flipped a coin.
At the Home Front
She who would wake up in the morning to a hurried breakfast to go to office is now at home with her boss at her screen, working from home without any particular schedule. He who would go to the gym every evening to workout is stuck at home without a proper space to even stretch in his small apartment. The kids are wondering if they are being punished for not being let to go out and play. The frustrated teenager, unable to meet her friends, is searching a way to vent herself out as she screams at her parents everyday. The grandparents have not been able to get their daily dose of fresh air. The maid servant, whose morning starts with a lot of physical labour for the households she serves, is suffering from body stiffness as she is suddenly out of work and her small room houses her four family members. What we called normal is not normal anymore. This is the new normal.
The first few days were understandable. But as days passed and Tuesdays turned into Fridays, Fridays to the next fortnight, and the fortnight to the next month, lives got jammed into spaces which were not well thought or designed, and unknowingly, the flaws started reflecting on people’s lifestyles, wondering only how is that, their minds were not at peace at a place everybody dearly called home. Each of us had a wish for a better space to breathe in.
​
All the Chores
As days passed by, we realized that everyday has its daily chores for the maintenance of a house. From sweeping, mopping, dusting, washing clothes, drying and folding clothes, cooking, washing utensils, emptying dustbin, marketing etc all these chores keep the house functioning. In normal days of the past, the maid servant would do most of the work and since resources were plentiful, there was not much need to lookout for the amount being used and the chores were overlooked by the rest of the family. Now since we are in a lockdown, resources are limited but the work needed to be done is still the same. The size of the rooms to be cleaned, the amount of furniture to be dusted, our requirement of clothes, the need for 3 meals a day for all the family members and their amounts to fill stomachs has not changed. But suddenly, everything has to be looked at differently and more thoughtfully. The work has to be shared amongst all the eligible family members since all of them are home and hygiene must be our utmost priority since it is a pandemic of a mortal virus.
This event has taught us how to use our resources (both people and material) intelligently as per our requirement, rather than our fancies. Also the fact needed to be considered is that all the household chores are time taking and tiresome and needs a time for rest as well since the people of the household have not been used to such chores till now. It might also lead to some frustration when done on a daily and continuous basis. At the comfort of the house members and as per the need of the hour, the houses are being swept and mopped if not everyday, then on an alternate day basis. The furniture is being dusted almost twice a week. The amount of clothes required has reduced considerably since there are no outgoing clothes, so one pair can do justice for two days at max. This has reduced the load of clothes going into a washing machine or the washing tub. Frequency of washing clothes has come down from daily to twice a week and so has the resources used for it such as washing powder since the departmental stores open at a regulated time and the time spent outside home for any work has to be reduced as much as possible.
​
The frequency of cooking, washing utensils and clearing kitchen dustbins remain the same but the variety of the dishes on one platter has reduced. Food is make do with simple recipes which can be made to wholesome amounts and the amount of utensils used in the entire process has been kept to a minimum. This has reduced the amount of dish wash soap over the month and has regulate its consumption for similar reasons as the detergent. It has also reduced the effort of washing utensils as their numbers are lesser now. All these chores are distributed amongst the family members as it has been instilled in their minds that no one else would be doing it if not they themselves. In a way, this act has brought the families together under one roof. Also, the family members have discovered a new found appreciation for the house maid for being able to do all the chores in such short timings without much complaint and for such low wages. Also, people have understood and appreciated time more, since among all these chores, our own work from office, school, college or business has still to be handled and completed. Team work and family love has found a fresh definition here.
​
Pandemic Travel and Work
Travelling stopped. Everything came to a standstill. A household has saved a month long petrol expenses till now. The carbon foot print for every individual has reduced considerably. Pollution level in the air has reached a stage now through the past month, which it had never reached in the last decade. The air is clean and the heat and traffic pockets of the cities have vanished. So utopian a situation this is. Isn’t this what we have always wanted? Clean and fresh air, lesser carbon expenses and some comfort? Is it actually necessary to travel? We can see the world through the internet.
Work still continues within the comfort of our homes, sometimes even more productively than what happens in our work places. Work stations have taken a new lift and have been redesigned to a newer definition in our homes. Everybody has set up their workstations taking care of their daily postures, functionality, utility and maximum effectiveness of the workspace, elements of calm for the mind and elements for fun. A strategic location for the workstation has been searched for with good lighting preferences and work has been executed while multi-tasking with other ongoing events in the home.
​
What next?
As I imagine what comes next, what and how our days will be after the lockdown ends, it throws me into a thought that now the medical profession is at the forefront but after our lives are saved, and things start getting back to normal, we will be those people who have survived a traumatic tragedy and would suddenly be very mindful of all the decisions that we take while living our lives, just like we do for our health after we recover from a bad illness.
Then, will there be a need to redesign everything around us? Will it be a chance for people to understand the importance of quality of space and design of things, for a better future?
​
MONIKUNTALA DAS