Government curfew, Day 30.
The morning perusal of internet headlines brought news of partial lifting of curfews in many parts of the island beginning tomorrow at 5:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. These daily breaks in the lockdown will not come to six metropolitan areas, including Colombo. For now, we remain under an indefinite lockdown.
The easing of curfews seems unrelated to a slowing in the spread of the coronavirus and more to do with providing economic relief to the most vulnerable. After several weeks of watching the same debate play out in the U.S., I inch closer to understanding on which side of the fence I fall and what governments' role in this complicated calculation should be.
Rather than finding comfort in that fact the government is striving to bring normalcy, I find myself apprehensive without knowing exactly why. The reason may be as simple as another change. Just when we were getting used to living in lockdown, a lifting of the same lockdown will bring another new routine.
I shared these apprehensions with Elise, finding it hard to say why not being confined to the house would make me uneasy. It's been a nice break. Telework is not easy, but once you embrace the lack of efficiency and, more importantly, your office doesn't fault you for a lack of efficiency, it's hard not to like not commuting, not having to shave or shower, getting to wear shorts all day long, and working at the dining room table beside Peter and Clementine.
I enjoy the quiet streets and wonder why anyone would want to go back to the how hectic it was before. The skies are bluer than they have ever been, unbelievably blue. Sam and I were driving back from his friends' apartment building, by the park in the middle of the city, when we were buzzed by a squadron of white egrets in fighter jet formation, fifteen or more birds each at least six feet tall a few feet off the ground. The next morning, we found a pelican feather in our yard.
I would like to think there is more to my apprehension than not wanting to go back to work. I definitely don't want to go back with the school still closed and the kids home, continuing online learning. Though I am not very good at helping them navigate their school day, I can make lunch and spell Elise when she is feeling overwhelmed. Keeping three kids focussed on three separate online lesson plans is a lot. I'm not a healthcare professional nor an economist and though I haven't been following the course of the pandemic as closely as others, while the number of cases still grows, I question the wisdom of opening society back up for business as usual. But I'm fortunate enough not to live paycheck to paycheck, so that easy for me to say.
It took five weeks, but every single Lego we own is now on the floor of the upstairsplay room. Sam spent every minute of daylight yesterday sorting through and building Legos.
I crashed on the couch this afternoon. After Clementine got done with her lessons, I somehow convinced her to lay down on my chest. She hadn't slept like that since she was a tiny baby and I held her like a running back carrying a football across the goal line. I didn't expect it, but she drifted off. We both did, dozing fitfully until Elise came downstairs to announce a seafood truck had parked across the street in front of the house. She and Peter went out to investigate and returned with a kilo of prawns and a snapper, Peter holding the decent-sized fish by the tail as though returning from a morning on the high seas.
Oh...and he is also teaching himself how to play the piano.
No comments:
Post a Comment