The Change

Wake up, freshen up, exercise, cook, eat, attend to phone calls

Wash, clean, sweep, mop, read, write, nap, sing, watch TV, go to bed

Everybody around the world is doing only this, so what’s new?

We did all this even before March

We did all this all our lives, so what’s different now?

Besides these, we went on our long walks

We met friends and chatted with them for hours

We visited our kith and kin and friends

We hosted feasts for our friends and relatives

We attended feasts that they hosted

We attended grand wedding celebrations

We went to the cinema and theatre

We enjoyed live music concerts with thousands of others

We went shopping in busy shopping areas

We went on pilgrimages, picnics, and tours

We went to funerals to share the grief of our dear ones

We went to hospitals to support our kith and kin when they are in need

We went to the nearby temples to pray in peace

We had reunions of our old friends

We got together, chatted and sang into late nights

We were not scared to visit our sick friends

Or when we heard someone cough or sneeze

Though we knew we are mortals

We never thought of death every minute

We were not shocked to see our friends at our doors

Vegetables, groceries, and fruits did not seem like demons to us

There were people to comfort those in trouble

Everything changed one day

Nobody realized that nature would revolt thus

Today, life is all about ‘how many infected and how many died?’

Who next and when?

Where did that life that we all took for granted suddenly vanish?

Why do we get scared when we see a fellow human being?

Fear is our only companion as

We wake up, freshen up, exercise, cook, eat, attend to phone calls

Wash, clean, sweep, mop, read, write, sing, watch TV, and go to bed!