Last year as we bid
farewell to 2019 and greeted 2020 with lots of hope and dream filled eyes, none
of us knew what 2020 had in store for us. Little did we know that the alien
words like corona virus and covid-19 will be the most commonly used words so
much so that it comes out of kindergarten kid’s mouth fluently. Wearing a mask
which used to be a fashion accessory will become mandatory part of outfit and
lockdown which used to be in history came out to be present day scenario.
The pandemic took over
the world crashing livelihood of every individual; laid off from job, bankrupt
business, orphaned kids, untimely dismissal were no extraordinary for 2020.
Rather busy streets started giving off eerie vibes filled with faint rustles of
fallen leaves and barking sounds. Festive seasons and celebratory days ended up
reminiscing how it used to be during those occasions and students ended up
sitting more in front of screen than sitting in classroom.
As the pandemic took
troll over the world, Bhutan was no exception as rest of the world. Though many
large countries fell prey to covid-19 sooner, a small kingdom of Bhutan managed
to keep local transmission of the virus at bay until recently. Even if there is
onset of local transmission, it is rather minimal comparing to the rest of
world and it can be contained. This is solely attributed to the dynamic and
foresighted leadership of King, hardworking government, selfless volunteers/
frontliners and an exemplary cooperation from general public.
Covid-19 made daily life
stagnant but it also brought a period of retrospection and self-reflection. It
made me realize how I took everything as granted; be it my relationship with
family, friends and the job. I failed to cherish their preciousness and kept wrestling
and juggling myself with trivial issues. As much as I took those things
granted, I lacked self-love, I tend to exhaust myself being self-conscious of
how I should behave and what people might say. I am too focused on others that
I lost myself.
Covid-19 and 2020 in
general instilled the fact that there is no GUARANTEED TOMORROW very vividly. I learned that being
alive and having a family who would call to check how my day went, having
circle of friends whom I can share my concerns, jokes and laughs, having a job
that provide me with platform to learn new things were the real luxuries I am
blessed with. It is okay to be not perfect, it is okay to take a breather and
it is okay to take life little less seriously. Being present, loving yourself
and holding your relationships dear is what you need to do today because we are
never sure about tomorrow.
I hereby say good bye to
2020 with more maturity, vigilance and gratefulness, thank you for all the
lessons. With a resolution to live life more positively, brightly and lovingly,
I welcome you 2021, please be gentle and bless the world with healing, remedy and
normalcy. A very happy new year!!!
