My 27th Letter to my Future GrandChild
9th June 2020
6 a.m.
Delhi
Hello my priceless little bun,
How are you my precious little? I trust you are enjoying every moment of your life to the fullest like there is no tomorrow because tomorrow never comes, so dwell in your today with all your heart and soak your soul in it.
In my last letter I had promised to you that I shall keep writing to you on our lives during the COVID times and the lessons this treacherous experience is teaching us until we are able to find a solution to get rid of it.
So here’s a little update on personal front darling. After trying really hard and after eighty three days of being stranded away in Gujarat we finally reached our home in Delhi on 6th June 2020. We had been given a valid pass to cross the states in our own vehicle by the Gujarat Govt. till Delhi during Unlock 1.0, after trying multiple avenues to get one for over a month.
It is so good to be back home in Delhi and now Vadodara is home too for all the love it has given to the three of us in the last three months. The people of Gujarat are so full of kindness even for the strangers. We will never forget their support to us. When all will be well, I will go there again and thank each one whom I just saw now from a distance and smiled. They have taught me one great lesson of humanity, to always help the needy fellow citizens unconditionally and generously as much as one can. I take a bow to them.
Honestly, I always wanted to be back home at the earliest but Corona fear has left me in two minds. While Vadodara has only a few hundred active cases, Delhi is a burning hot platter of many thousands of actives cases growing sporadically, which is so alarming.
When I mentioned Unlock 1.0 you must have felt so relieved kid, that our ordeal is over but the truth is we are far far away from it and the situation has worsened. India today had more than two and half lakhs of positive cases and Delhi alone has more than thirty one thousand cases as of today and they say we are heading towards community spreads and the peak is yet to arrive. So my mind kept thinking of staying in Vadodara for a few more months a better option than coming to the burning Delhi but nevertheless when we got the pass we silently drove back a thousand kilometres back home, my boys wanted it and somewhere deep within I longed for home sweet home too.
Coming back home was beautiful and so was the journey because we have not seen anything beyond our lane where we lived from the time the lockdown has happened. It was so good to be on road, which were practically empty and we could soak in the scenic views both sides. The small villages and towns showed usual activity but slightly bigger ones were more deserted. I felt nauseous and uncomfortable as we began our drive at 5 a.m. perhaps because I had got up at three to cook but it soon settled down thankfully as I grabbed a bite of the breakfast, I had meticulously packed.
We had kept our documents ready for checking at state borders as it was told that Delhi borders are sealed but by God’s grace we had to stop only twice on the way for refuelling and we reached home safe and sound by 7:30 p.m. after covering over a thousand kilometres in a straight drive.
Back home your grandpa asked for some tea but the burner refused to turn on despite trying for over an hour. That’s when my getting up at three came handy. I had packed lunch and dinner as well for us to be on a safer side and so we warmed it in our microwave and enjoyed it with green tea. Next morn, by God’s grace, the burner started functioning and I could make the breakfast and thereafter rest as it was a Sunday and the journey was tiring.
Our home was all spick and span thanks to our caretaker Raju bhaiya who came once a week to clean up after the lockdown was relaxed but I was so heartbroken to see my balcony garden totally devastated and dried up. I have bought and tended to each plant with a lot of love and care ever since I shifted to Delhi last October from Pune and seeing them in ruins today makes my heart cry. I have already started working on them and save as many of them as possible. I have written to you earlier too dear how I love gardening and am a hardcore nature lover. Earlier I had to abandon my plants in Pune and handed them over to a dear friend because of our shifting, I had made a lot of new green friends in Vadodara though. I want you to nurture a similar love for these green souls.
So yes sweetheart one goal to reach back our holy abode has been accomplished but are we getting better living with the fear of COVID? Well, there is no other way out. The show must go on under all circumstances. This is the reason Unlock 1.0 has been announced and the entire economy has been opened up gradually because if we continued the lockdown people who may not die of COVID would die of hunger as they need to earn some money literally. Flights, trains, offices, restaurants, temples all have resumed now due to which the number of cases and the fear of community spread has increased too.
Each one of us has a responsibility to always wear a mask when we go out and maintain a minimum one metre distance from others. Washing our hands with soap and water for more than 20 seconds or sanitising them frequently is also highly recommended. We are abiding by them all and also are keeping ourselves home quarantined for fourteen days as the protocol says for ensuring the safety of our fellow citizens.
That the new norm, my child. Strange yet true till we have a way out. Will write to you again shortly to apprise you with the new developments of our lives until the COVID era ends. After all you need to know every bit.
Accha, Granny’s new book dedicated to you is out and she has knocked off thirteen kgs weight already, so the two goals she as set for the lockdown are done and dusted. Thank you so much for being my inspiration during these though times, my child.
Sending your way the light of wisdom,
Your Grand-mom
Roma
If you like what I write, you can grab the copies of my five published ebooks here: The Fragrance of True Love, Destiny's Favorite Child, Dare to Defy The Destiny , Empowered Women Empower Women and To My GrandChild, With Love
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