I first saw The Lockdown Silver Linings Tag on Life with KTKinnes and decided to take it up. The tag was started by Twin Mummy and Daddy.
The lockdown in India is until May 31st (at least as of now). Things have started to open up gradually in our city, so it seems the right time to look back on what we’ve got out of this experience.
The Lockdown Silver Linings
With the very short notice that we in India got about the lockdown, it was easy to panic. Easy to wonder how we would manage for food and other essentials. Even more worrying was the need to ensure that our dogs got their food.
Nothing quite prepares us for a situation like this, does it? But the realization that we were all in it together, made it easier. This was not a time to panic, to fight any battles at the supermarket, or to give into despair. These times called for a cool head, thinking practically and above all, kindness.
I won’t bore you with the details of how we managed, but we did and for that I’m grateful. And that’s what this post is really all about – gratitude. That’s what I’ve been focusing on it all through the lockdown. And the Lockdown Silver Linings Tag is a great way to express my gratitude.
Gratefulness is a setting of the heart, one that I can choose like a wavelength on the radio.
Susan Mazrolle
There was no shortage of food supplies in our city. Thankfully too, the prices of fresh vegetables and fruits and other essentials remained at the usual levels.
Since we are restricting the number of times we go out to shops, we’ve learnt to plan our meals more efficiently and manage with what we have. We’ve been eating healthy, with a decision not to order in. In the past, if we didn’t have a meal planned, we’d just log into a food app and order in.
Also, in trying to manage with the supplies we have and add variety, we’ve been trying out new dishes and slowly adding to the list of food we can make. Incidentally, I’m not a strictly by-the-book cook, so usually we have a once-in-a-lifetime version of a dish each time I cook! 😉
After the initial days, we also managed to rework our schedules to do a lot more. We’re getting up earlier and being more particular about meal timings.
We had been doing the in-house chores ourselves for a couple of months, but we had regular help with some portions of the house – the largish balcony and the small yard. But while continuing to pay our help, we decided not to compromise on our health and have added these chores to our list too. We’ve learned to be more self-reliant and honestly all these additional physical tasks have kept us healthier, barring a few aches and pains.
More recently, we’ve started going for walks together in the evenings instead of our separate walks. This gives us more time to talk.
On the work front, I managed to move the beta training course online and we’re near the end despite some longish pauses in the recent weeks. Overall, the two participants seemed to have gained from it, and it gave me an idea for what I can do with future courses. I’ve also launched a podcast which I’m working on putting out more regularly going forward. At present, I’ve got quite a few paid projects on hand and plenty of books to read (and reviews to write!). I’m ever grateful for work in these hard times. It can help me to help more people too.
I’ve also reconnected with some people and have had really meaningful conversations.
Looking at all the suffering around us has been hard. I’ve tried to connect donors with causes and make some lasting connections with good people who were on the ground feeding the hungry and reaching out. We were able to make meaningful and timely contributions to help people without food.
The more that we allow our hearts to expand to love, deeply appreciate, and feel inextricably tied to the places, things and people of this world, the more we are likely to take a stand on behalf of what we value.
Kristi Nelson
The pandemic has reaffirmed certain values we hold dear – brought them into sharper focus and helped us live more meaningfully.
What have the lockdown silver linings been for you? I’d love to hear in the comments or even better in a post on your blog/ on social media.
To be honest, though salaries were reduced, in every other way it has been a relaxed scenario for us. Food was available aplenty… more free time than usual (we were split into reserve teams), could travel in vehicles… had a decent city population who adhered to the rules.
Roshan Radhakrishnan recently posted..Mango Season in Kerala #WordlessWednesday
I am grateful for all that we had despite the crisis. Hubby and I were home together after years and it felt like we were reconnecting! And it did feel good that we realised how we need to manage things and become self-reliant.
It was a stressful situation in the beginning but we were able to manage so far. Lockdown did bring out the best in us, I believe. You had a very productive lockdown, Corinne. Waiting for the next podcast.
Vinitha recently posted..Gratitude in troubled times
So many silver linings Corinne. But I’d mention two.
The small bunch of youngsters in Krishna District that I’d been a mentor-friend to, could quickly adapt to telephone conference calls for our weekly catching up. What’s more, latecoming and absenteeism isn’t much of an option these days (unless the phone’s switched off).
Last year was the first time we had to let Abishai, our only child, leave for Ahmedabad for his undergrads. But pleasantly, the pandemic brought him back home and this monsoon semester is going to be online.
This pandemic has certainly put many things in perspective. Life is almost returning back to normal. But it will be a new normal.
Could relate to every line. Deeply thankful for being able to stay safe, have more meals with family and reconnect. As always reading your post feels as blissful as reading a good book. ❤️
Thank you for sharing this. I’ll share mine on my blog.
As the monsoon is around the corner, I could see many dark clouds these days playing hide and seek with Mr. Sun. And every time there is a moment when the sun is completely hidden behind the cloud leaving an attractive silver lining to it. With every such spotting, it reminds me of the age-old proverb, sending me in the pensive mode to deliberate on the silver linings of lockdown. Without fail, a new facet of life that has been benefited due to lockdown opens up in front of my mind, making me grateful to Almighty for being so kind. The heart is filled with gratitude and eyes turn moist. Though we are in lockdown, I feel I am more liberated and in better control of myself, my emotional world and my routine!
One of the silver linings for me has been being able to work from home and fight technology fears because much of what I do requires the use of zoom, or other online activities, and recordings. I had forgotten what a homebody I can be. I am basically an introvert, though my vocation requires me to act like an extrovert, at least on typical Sunday mornings. But I have relished being able to be at home, with just occasional trips out. Another has been more time for writing and reading and re-evaluating my use of time, both in terms of daily time and retirement time.
“I’m not a strictly by-the-book cook, so usually we have a once-in-a-lifetime version of a dish each time I cook!” made me smile because until a couple of years ago, I too was the same kind of cook always sure that the same dish even cooked with the (almost) same ingredients every time will definitely turn to taste differently. I am looking forward to the next episode of the podcast. Your podcasts and the call for writing fiction brought me out of my writer’s mental block and also back to blogging. My blog and blogging, both had ceased in importance for me looking at the worse times going on in the world.
You have been privy to my teary bursts on my FB page twice during this lockdown. The lockdown, in the beginning, was too hard for me with a lot of fear about us catching the virus and the anxiety of staying cooped up in the house with increased daily work and no me-time. I am thankful for you and a set of a few more friends with whom I can share my vulnerability unabashedly. Writing, sharing, and reading your kind words helped immensely. Once the fear and anxiety dissipated, I began recognizing the biggest blessing that the family and I are safe and healthy and we have enough to eat and be happy about. Just yesterday, I entered the kitchen in the morning and like the usual default setting of the mind the first thought was ‘Why do I have to cook daily and all the time?’ That very moment the emotion of gratitude rushed in to tell me ‘I have vegetables and grains to cook. There are millions of migrant workers who are passing days without food and water.’
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