– Yugika Mital
Depending on what time of the pandemic we spoke, you probably have heard me say ‘I’m quite liking the lockdown, you know? Not having to talk to a lot of people’ or ‘This WFH has wrecked my routine!’ or ‘It’s kinda nice to cook different dishes but then washing the dishes is what really challenges me’, even ‘I’m going home, not knowing when I’ll be returning so it’s like an adventure’ to ‘That’s it. The lockdown needs to end and even this introvert needs to socialise a little’.
But if we’ve spoken very recently, I probably have said to you ‘one day at a time, is what I’m looking at’ considering the back-stabbing turn that life took with its myriad tests and an irreplaceable loss that we’ve faced. I now fear this pandemic probably more than any rational person does. But this is not about the months of agony that this year earlier brought with itself; this is about gratitude and being mindfully present in what is happening right now.
My most favourite part of the day is Morning because it now brings with itself the slight arrival of temperate weather followed by cheerful morning wishes, kisses and hugs. Each morning I’m reminded of how grateful I should be to be able to spend it with my family, who’ve given me everything I have and am. To be able to sit with them and enjoy breakfast with endless stories of the past that are hilarious, inspirational, and remind me of my ancestors and the marvel I hold in myself by just being born here.
Sitting together with family/ friends for meals can be such a relaxing activity – you connect on a new topic on almost a daily basis. While everyone literally jumps on each other’s words to tell their story, you just wish for time to pause for a little while so that you can soak in all these memories. There can be the most mundane sabji but 10 minutes into the meal, just the joy of sitting together, healthy, happy and safe can make you feel so grateful. Lunch and dinner, are honestly no different. The anxiety that the outside world can cause in one’s mind can so easily be comforted by some light hearted moments with family. (Fortunate are those for whom this holds true, I understand that.)
Moreover, when it comes to gratitude, why wait for particular times of the day to enjoy some togetherness? I’ve started clicking more pictures to capture the most random moments because as preachy as it might sound, I’ve realised that in the end, photographs are what eventually shape your fading memory. I capture in a click my grandma sitting on the terrace, peaceful in the evening wind while at least 2 of us utilise the space for some exercise. I want to take images of the random board games my father and I played on a rainy day when the current was out for about 12 hours straight. My camera roll is now increasingly filled with images of my mother making comical faces when I ask her to smile and those with my sister when we cook together or just simply sit together to chat. Honestly, we’ve moved past the stage where anyone refuses to take a picture because ‘their hair doesn’t look good’ or they look ‘too tired’! There are such ‘trivial/ day to day’ moments that I do not hold the writing proficiency to articulate with vivid imagery but when I recall them, I automatically close my eyes and am transported to those – feeling relaxed and meditated.
I have started appreciating how this pandemic has given us a chance to cook together at times, be more aware of each other tastes – in food, clothing, entertainment etc., learn new skills, games and trivia from one another, understand each other’s professional work, share our biggest achievements so far and several of the most embarrassing stories and many more things that have made us connect with each other on new levels. Don’t get me wrong, we’ve always been decently close as a family but now we’re taking out time to be consciously present and contribute the most to this limited time together before everyone (possibly) disperses again to different cities.
I like knowing my family members’ routines, impulses, likes/ dislikes and that how these different personalities have begun to gel together better than before; to know that we all have different goals in life/ in a day but to understand that all these goals involve a sought out future for all of us. Everyone seems to be sailing through different storms in their minds but I have begun to feel how these storms calm down when we complement each others’ personalities. It is One Day at a Time but I know we’re moving forward each day, together, and that is all that counts.
yugika 