The New Normal

Rainbow appears on locked down New York

Chasing your dreams have become quite the passe in the last few months. Just not for me or for you but for the entire world. The reality has hit us all like a ton of bricks while we were busy making other plans. The beautiful, pulsating world that we loved to hate is today under a lock down globally. The scenes that we constantly see on media streams could be straight out of a forgettable Hollywood potboiler. Hard hitting and haunting. The message is loud and clear. Pay heed man kind, you don't own this Earth. We have just been allowed to rent it for a while. As a bad renter you will face consequence of eviction. If you want to live on this planet respect it has been the message hanging for all of us to see. Yet we refused to see it. So today we have been sent that perennial message in the bottle - live in the present with utmost humility, live consciously, live kindly and live with a deep sense responsibility for this magical home called Earth. Otherwise please leave.

I was at cross roads only this February when I turned 50. I couldn't give myself the permission to live, I was torn between my heart and my head. And then came the redefining March 2020 and rest is history as it is said. So many did not get the chance like me to make it to this milestone. Never before the forbidding fifty felt like an achievement in living. A life full of wins and defeats in equal measure. Boy am I glad or am I glad to have been around for so long! 

Indian philosophy defines human fragility in a beautiful word called Maya. Maya is the illusion of life. That glue which makes us possessive, makes us manipulative and imagine to be all controlling. However, that's the greatest deception. It's called the Maya jaal  or web of life. Breakable and fragile. Today world indeed feels like an illusion and a nightmare in the same breath. My this blog started a decade ago on the same premise. No no I had not envisioned some great pandemic and little did I know in a decade I'll again feel so insignificant and hapless. The bottom line is human ego has no place on this planet.  

I'm so thankful for the 50 years that I've lived, learned, lost on this Earth. Blessed with well meaning and loving parents I had my share of adventure, travel and graft. Made my own tribe with strong friendships which has withstood testing times. I'm ever so grateful for a full life. From here on the journey will be completely different for me and the world around me.

Little to say lessons learnt will be both individual and collective, in this experience. It will all depend on if we land on our feet from it or not. Disease has no religion. It doesn't stop because of class. However, it affects the poor worst. Countries of the world need accessible and strong healthcare infrastructure. The world needs more doctors, nurses and healthcare staff than it needs drones. As individuals it's time to pause and re-calibrate and ask ourselves what's the most important thing in our lives? And are we doing enough to preserve it? But as human kind, as nations and as the free world too needs to question how supremacy and being a super power is contributory to growth or perhaps even is it relevant? Is arms and ammunition more important than health care, education and social welfare for all? Should 93% of the world population live in poverty while 7% enjoy the bubble of wealth? It's time we addressed issues of climate change, poverty eradication and redistribution of wealth on a war footing if  we want to live to see another 2000 years.

From now each action of an individual today will make or break humanity for years to come. No pressure! This is what I have learnt in the past 4 weeks. I've lived on my own since my 20s. In between I was married for a decade so learnt to live with others as well. Not only I'm an only child but I've also lived 50% of my years on my own. Have also worked from home for close to seven years. So, staying home alone in the current times is not as stressful as it's for others. But the absolute stillness that surrounds the world as we know is quite a new thing and needed to come to terms with. Gardening helped me a lot in centering myself.  The many bird songs, the blooming flowers, the deep blue sky, the pink Moon keeps reminding us how to make each day count like never before. And sometimes dog barks too add some reassurance! Well on the whole, I'm getting better at it slowly.

The most important lesson that I've learnt yet again from the experience is the fact that change is the only constant and now is all I have. So live each moment of the day with gratitude, for my loved ones, love for self and the world. Each day I fill my heart with compassion so that I can be more humane and be helpful. Writing helps to keep our thoughts focused. Do keep a journal of any kind, gratitude journal will relieve you of some of the depression.

Don't try to be too constructive and learn to relax a bit. Please don't try to learn everything under the Sun and stress over it. That'll only increase your blood pressure. Try connecting with things you enjoy and are meditative in nature. I've picked up my sketch book again and have started doodling. But no I've not enrolled in a master class. Instead I've watched the 'Sky Portrait Artist of  the Year ', with much joy and marvel. Spend at least an hour without talking, or being a slave to any digital platform. Also try not to spend more than an hour on the news of the world. Avoid social media over drive. Experience the stillness around you. Call a friend or a loved one from time to time. Parents and elderly relatives come first. Read for half an hour each day. The insecurity and depression can be minimised this way to a great extent.

The last time I met anyone socially that, was on 16 March 2020. Since then I've been on my own barring a few times when I've stepped out to buy essentials, where I've met shop keepers and shop assistants and exchanged pleasantries. However, I keep calling my Father and friends every now and then. Trust me it's possible to see a rainbow in a distant land and marvel at the breathtaking beauty for a moment. May the world scientific community soon find a vaccine to release us from our bubble. Patience will get us their with mutual support and goodwill. Everyone stay healthy and well in these unreal times. Let's pray each day and be merciful to all. Best wishes to the world and every being that makes it a wonder.