2017-2020
Travelling or in my instance being on the move was all I knew. I never thought beyond the present moment. There was never any “five year plan” the only planning i did was what would i eat for lunch or dinner that day. I thought I was young and eventually things would fall into place. Oh how utterly wrong I was.
March 2020 –
I celebrated my 24th birthday in Sydney and was bound to fly home the next day for a week. There were news of the virus spreading in China at the time. But like most people I too had underestimated it.
When i landed in Mumbai after midnight, my best friend received me at the airport with a cake, we hung out for a while, laughed like we do and eventually headed home. Everything was normal.
Two days later,
You’d think I must be shattered reading the news. But it was the opposite for me. Because for me this meant my holidays had been extended! And who doesn’t like that? Without wasting any time I began planning trips. But borrowed enjoyment doesn’t last long, does it?
My country went into a nationwide lockdown with cases and anxieties only peaking. I was away from my comfort zone, my lifestyle, my ‘normal’. Me, just like everyone else wasn’t prepared for this. Eventually, people around me found ways to live their life coexisting with the pandemic. But how could I? My normal could not be achieved by a makeshift work-desk. I could not cope with my feelings. I pushed away things and people dear to me because i was unhappy.
It took me some time to realise that I’m not a sulking damsel in distress. I knew I had to get myself together until I go back and do something about this mess I am in right now. I couldn’t get a job because I don’t have any special talents so to speak. I couldn’t succeed at a business I tried because, well, I don’t know. So all I could do was take care of myself mentally and try not to hurt the people around me.
If you’re somewhat in a similar situation like mine. Where all you can do right now is survive, that’s enough. Here’s a glimpse of what I’ve been doing the past 6 months or so. And If you ask me today, I am doing better than I was at the start of this pandemic.
If I was in the 1920s influenza era I would go to the nearest hill and gaze at the landscape, maybe even paint it. Right now, the only gazing I could do from my apartment was another apartment.
• So, I changed the thing I see the most, my Instagram feed. I basically mostly followed pages that would empower me. I started feeding myself positive content (not just inspirational quotes please. You can actually OD on them).
• Started writing just a single line of what I was grateful for that day. I once wrote “I am grateful for the lady doing zumba in the opposite window because she made me laugh” (when i read it now, I sound like a creep even to myself, but it was what it was) just write it! I mean it’s your choice, you could write, type, whatever it is you want, but do it. It’s a game changer.
• Imagine the internet is a public park and you could meet anyone, trying to get somewhere substantial just like you. See it like a stranger reading your favourite book on a bench of that park, you’d want to talk to them, wouldn’t you? Go join an online community, choose from countless communities with people from all walks sharing their ideas, their journeys, their goals. It’s beautiful and so encouraging. It gives you a purpose. Soon you’ll realise you’re not alone.
Here are a few examples:
https://www.facebook.com/firstmomsclub/
You could also read this Article published in Grazia India about the significance of Online communities in today’s age:
https://www.grazia.co.in/lifestyle/how-do-online-communities-enhance-your-career-path-5792.html
• I can’t tell you to eat good, workout for 30 minutes a day and drink a gallon of water. I am sure you’ve already read it a million times by now. Because to be honest, even though i knew I had to do it I couldn’t. I realised it isn’t easy and that’s okay. Take your time, start slow, start late and start doing it whenever you’re ready. And when you do start, please don’t be disheartened if you don’t see results in a week. We are a part of Nature and the only things that show instant effects are calamities. Blooming takes time, hence blooming is pretty.
• Find your routine, even if your work demands an uneven schedule. Do one thing at the same time everyday. It could be sitting in peace with your coffee, watering your plants or just sitting quietly by your window for ten minutes. And look forward to it everyday. Use that time to learn, to enjoy the little things in life. Take deep breaths in those ten minutes. Forget about your worries in those ten minutes. And just be grateful for that moment of quite and peace.
“You only need to do 80% of the actions 80% of the time to see a difference”
• There are no set rules to come over a difficult time in your life. But it’s your difficult time whether you like it or not, you own it. So the sooner you make peace with it the sooner you’ll learn how to get over it. If you decide to run away from it don’t be surprised if it comes back at you after a while.
• You may seem to never see the end right now. But trust the process, you’ll come out stronger than you ever expected. These times will open your eyes to things you were otherwise too blind to see. There isn’t any overnight formula for this, but the difficult days are worth the good days coming forward.
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