Redefining Love in the times of corona

The other day I was on Twitter after a longish hiatus. I was thoroughly amused by this tweet by @sarahfarooqui20  Here’s what she said:

“Some one should write Love in the Times of Corona. A poignant tale of love and longing in a masked world, embittered with social distance.”

Most of us have read or heard of Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s masterpiece, “Love in the times of Cholera.”  Inspired by Sarah Farooqui’s quote I thought this would make for an ideal piece. Even though my take might just vary from hers. So here goes.

How about creating our very own version “Love in the Times of Corona.”

Our modern society is caught in a time wrap, bereft of emoting enough, and has slowly but surely turned distant and alien towards simple things that brought them joy. We are caught in the dog eat dog world, chasing our targets whether at work or in life, or running after unknown means to keep us “happy”.

Internet has paved way for phenomenal amounts of social distancing, to say the least. All we now needed was a virus to give us more reasons to be socially distant!

But here’s the good thing. Here’s how we can create “Love in the Times of Corona.”

We don’t need to distance ourselves from our families (provided they aren’t carriers themselves). Yes, I guess over the years there has developed a gaping chasm between families alike, thanks to the onslaught of internet and media, the busyness of life per say and our sky- rocketing stress-anxiety levels..

Love in the times of Corona translates to actually spending valuable time with the family. Here’s how:

1. Time to Bond and have conversations, rustle up interesting meals, play board games, spend DEAR time (drop Everything to Read), declutter spaces that got overlooked or put on to the back burner, garden and plant love, and give our homes a brand new, refurbished look.

2. Make  art and craft and love too, guys. Confinement you see ain’t so bad. Bring that creativity back with a bang. Sketch, paint, zentangle. Write, journal. Maybe write the book of poetry you always intended to. Do whatever stokes your over active, imaginative mind.

3. And how about copious doses of “self-love” in the times of Corona? Spending me-time, pampering our inner goddesses and Greek Gods alike. A spa at home, spent self pampering is a fairly good idea too, amidst scented candles and a one-off warm dip in the tub (save the water will you!). Soak in the joy and love and watch all the fears and unwarranted thoughts about Corona melt away. Grab the Corona beer if you please, and watch some Netflix/Hotstar all by yourself.

4. And for chrissake get off social media – Whataspp, Facebook, Twitter, Insta. Stop reading all the unnecessary news meant to make you panic further. And if you do get on to these mediums,  channelise only a few moments from your precious time spent at home, under the guise of quarantine and love.

I deleted my Whatsapp messenger for 3 days, only to log back on Monday, as work beckoned. And given the “work out of home” policy, that’s the only way to stay in tune.

5. Let’s spread love, and refrain from endlessly discussing or posting about the virus. There are better things to discuss. When we curb that instinct to share, it proves to be an effective tool to distance our selves from the impact. It quells our fears and makes the pandemic less larger than life. It curbs an invitation to come and attach with you.

6. Mediate, pray, chant. Good vibes only.  Envelope the world with healing and positive energies. And exercise out of home, or get some fresh air amidst the greenery.

Come, let’s practise “Love in the times of Corona.”

I got this lovely message from a dear friend who I hadn’t spoken to in more than a year:

“Hi Natasha, Please take care. Stay safe and healthy.”

That was one of the sweetest messages in a while. Reiterating that there were friends and family watching out for us.

“It was the time when they loved each other best, without hurry or excess, when both were most conscious of and grateful for their incredible victories over adversity. Life would still present them with other mortal trails, of course, but that no longer mattered: they were on the other shore. ”

― Gabriel García Márquez, Love in the Time of Cholera

 

 

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Written for YeahWrite NonFiction #466 and #WordlessWednesday

 

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