Dear readers,
The COVID- 19 pandemic has been a struggle, not just in a physical capacity but an emotional, mental, and financial one too. On one hand, these testing times have revealed some gruesome realities and priorities of our governments, while on the other hand it has strengthened my belief in humanity. Just as people have come forward to help each other, the various institutions of our society have somehow failed to keep their promises. When the healthcare system of the country broke down, people seemed to have realized their privileged and unprivileged statuses in the country. Now, it will be a platitudinous effort to point out the differences between the conditions of various classes, inflicted due to the pandemic – as suffice as we think it is to infer the situation from the daily news, it is not. The economically privileged class might be able to sympathize with the cause but will never be able to empathize with the sections of the society that have experienced the worst blow of the pandemic.
For those who have stumbled upon this piece, I’ll not bore you with the technicalities, we are well aware of the same. Rather this letter should be considered as a token of appreciation for you and a testimony against your lonesome fears. This is the first time in history that young adults have experienced a world-wide emergency of this extent. Until recently, most of us had never felt the anxieties, fear, and trauma, as consequences of mass violence and death, like our ancestors and survivors of the Great Wars and previous pandemics did. The negative impact of globalization was only theoretical, but now it knocks at our door with a thud so loud it has the power to terrorize and attack even the strongest grit. Today, in most families it is the young adults who have taken the place of caregivers, providing emotional support and sharing responsibilities, like never before. The kind of patience that they have learnt to demonstrate has a commendable yet heartrending touch to it and their endurance level has now reached an invariably high altitude.
The pandemic is taking away the prime years of youth, we’re missing out on opportunities and experiences that life usually offers to one. Things like graduating while sitting at home, missing living alone or with friends, giving up secret rendezvous, losing the opportunity to make contacts either friendly or professionally, and-the-like may seem like childish fantasies that one has while growing up but the importance they hold in an adolescents’ life is unexplainable. The fun, excitement, joy and thrill have now been replaced by fear, anxiety and frustration. We are now gawked by the fear of losing our loved ones, anxious about what the future might hold and are getting frustrated by minute details of our daily lives. The responsibility of the young caregivers has taken the form of enduring stress, anger, anxieties, and frustration of not just their own, but of their family members too. Since the expectations for such acts have increased multitudinously, fulfilling it with zeal becomes the least of one’s supposition.
It’s true that this quarantine has given us a chance to spend more time with our immediate family members than our fast-paced pre-quarantine life might have given us. However, not everyone considers their home a safe haven, and many long to move out for studies or jobs just to have their mental peace. The pandemic has once again shoved them back to square one, and forced them to deal with the nuances that they hoped to have escaped. Not everyone has enough motivation to try new things and turn their life around – what about the ones who used their hectic schedule as a coping mechanism or those who felt content in the hustle of life? People are bound to compromise their mental health in these times, but it has become a tedious task to masquerade it now.
If this was not enough, the educational institutions of the country have constantly shown their apathy for their students, staff and their families. Their decision on conducting classes and exams during such grave circumstances has left no aspect of a student’s life to be a safe haven for them. Even if we somehow manage to recant the economic disparities of the online mode of education, we cannot, however, excuse the mental pressure that the young minds are subjected to through this mode of education. When the most essential task should be surviving this pandemic with the sole objective of being safe and sound, the youth is troubled by the thoughts of losing out on opportunities and its effects on their future. The levels of stress endowed upon them has the emerging literature measure its impact in the form of diverse mental health problems. As we stare into the unpredictability of our future, we must not let our tranquility go into oblivion. After all, surviving a catastrophe requires an equal resilience of the spirit, as of the body.
I’m writing to the ones who have had the bandwidth to read it – I would like to congratulate and appreciate you. This is to assure you that you’re not alone in having such feelings, nor are you wrong to feel them. You have come a long way from being the person you were before this pandemic broke out, and still have a long road ahead because the fight isn’t over yet. Albeit the self-loathing thoughts some of us might have, we are going to be proud of ourselves for withstanding and surviving COVID-19. Until then all we have to do is to endure, and at the same time take care of ourselves as it’s essential for the newbie – young caregivers of our families to have the strength as well as vitality of mind to fight the remaining battle. Lastly, despite what the future might hold and the present may terrorize us with, I’m here to appreciate the fact that at the very least we’re trying.
Your friend,
Khyati
Khyati is a third year History student at Lady Shri Ram College for women. She believes that words have the power to change the society, and tends to use these. Interested in research, she's expecting to pursue the same in furure.
Ahaa, its fаstіdious conversation on the topic of this piece of writing here at thiѕ weЬpage, I have read all that,
so now me also commеnting at this place.
I absolutely love your website.. Excellent colors & theme.
Did you develop this website yourself? Please reply back as I’m hoping to
create my own site and want to know where you got this from or
just what the theme is named. Appreciate it!
At this time it apρears like BlogEngіne is the preferred blogging platform
available right now. (from what I’ve read) Ιs
that whɑt you’re using ᧐n your blog?
Hеy! This post could not be written any better!
Reading throսgh this post remindѕ mе of my good old room mate!
He always kept tɑlking about this. I will forwаrd this pⲟst
to him. Pretty sure he wiⅼl have a good read. Many thanks
for sharing!