All the lessons that 2020 taught me – The Times of India Blog

I feel like slapping all those people including myself for being so excited about 2020. I remember saying, 2020! It has an amazing ring to it. You could call me a futurist I guess, as the sound of our banging utensils to drive corona kept ringing in our ears for quite some time. The year started with me having a terrible bout of cold along with everybody else in the house. Everyone blamed each other for their Rudolph noses. None of nanis nuskas were helping so I had to rely on my fathers oft-repeated advice: Having medicine will treat the common cold in five days and not having it will treat it in paanch din. It was in this spirit of resilience that we started to believe that perhaps this testing year has come to teach us something. And indeed it did test my patience in several ways. For instance, when my arduous effort at baking was used as stapu by my kids to play hopscotch, or when the atmanirbhar decorations we (mostly me) made for our daughters birthday were crumpled in an instant and used in a paper ball fight by my angelic monsters, or when my screen time meant watching endless episodes of My Little Pony, and also when spending quality time with my partner meant I had worn out my ingenuity having practically used every position in every nook and corner of the house.

Heck, my patience was tested even before the lockdown was imposed with Trumps efforts at pronouncing Swami Vivekananda. I guess thats what set the tone for the year ahead. But it was time to take matters into my hand. And so with a resilient spirit I woke up every morning before everyone did and spent my early morning hours writing. Of course, these were disrupted with exciting activities like lighting diyas, finding the perfect utensil or instrument to make maximum noise and preparing for cyclone Nisarga. Thankfully not a single plant pot budged in our balconies leaving us relieved and the kids a bit disappointed. But I did manage to write The Lockdown Tales, a series of short stories that highlighted the triumph of the human spirit that could help us sail through tough times. I dont know if it helped anyone but it certainly did contribute towards my own sanity. Once the writing bug bit me, I completed my fourth book The 12 commandments of being a woman But as the fears and conspiracy theories around this novel virus were increasing, we all quickly packed our bags and left for Chandigarh to be with our parents. The first few weeks went into managing the protocol for them. Sanitizer to be used, and not to be kept as a show piece. Masks to be worn on face covering nose and mouth, and not to be used as tha tha worn by sardarjis on their chin to set their beards. Also, use of hands, kerchiefs and dupattas are an epic fail! No hugs and handshakes, even though papa resisted saying but he is a nice man Gawd, it took me forever to explain unlike some of us, coronavirus isnt homophobic, it likes nice men too! But these tests of patience were nothing compared to the shattering news of Sushant Singhs suicide. There was disbelief, sadness and a bigger reason to hate 2020. But what was appalling and disheartening was the way vested interests and politics rode roughshod over humanity. But this is also where I saw courage amongst many people who stood up for their beliefs. The fear of trolls came in secondary to their pursuit in seeking peace. Another major change was when the government banned 59 Chinese apps including the popular TikTok.

Again, I saw popular media influencers support those who lost their account on other apps. Humanity scored over rivalry.

The year hasnt ended and we are seeing the biggest peaceful farmers protest over three bills of agriculture reforms that were introduced in Parliament. While I see agitation, I also see humanity once again sprouting on highways and roads where the protesting farmers have started growing small crops, where they are educating the lesser fortunate with free tuition while sitting on dharna, and where they are feeding everyone including the cops. Everyone is entitled to their opinion and a progressive society is a result of these differences of opinions. But what makes it human is when the conflicts are resolved with dignity and peace. 2020 has taught me a lot.

On a lighter note, it has also taught me that common cold need not be a family experience. I once again have a seasonal cold with runny nose and sneezes. But the Covid isolation routine replete with mask and sanitizer ensured that no other family member got it. Common cold ceased to be a common experience courtesy of the coronavirus protocol. Dekha 2020 is constantly teaching us!

Views expressed above are the author's own.

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All the lessons that 2020 taught me - The Times of India Blog