Lockdown 3.0 is round the corner. And so far, though a few have seen their patience ebb away, most of Hyderabad’s responsible citizens have stayed indoors making the most of the lockdown.
As seen from a few social media posts, some have even started wondering whether they will be able to adjust when the lockdown is lifted or whether they will have to tackle some sort of Stockholm syndrome after being ‘captives’ in their homes.
Most won’t be surprised if they take time to get back to what life was before the lockdown, the ‘going out of home to work’ part of it especially, because over the last one month, families as a whole have changed their daily schedules and over time, even their approach towards each other.
While some are cursing the lockdown for ‘curtailing’ their freedom, the same lockdown has turned out to be a blessing in disguise for many, providing the much-needed break to upgrade their skills and spend time with their children and learn the value of relationships with families and friends.
During regular days, one hardly gets sufficient opportunities to spend time with the family, speak to children or understand the hardwork done by mothers in making them ready to school, cook food and pack lunch, says M Venugopal, a businessman.
“Myself and my children take up domestic chores like cleaning and mopping the floors and help in keeping the home clean. If possible, we make the children to learn a few cooking skills. These things will help them a lot in future when they have to stay away from home” he explains.
For many others, it has been the best time to help themselves unwind from the stressful office work and detoxify from digital dependence and on the other hand, bond with the family.
“Spending quality time during lockdown is definitely a task. To make it more fun and learning process, I am making my children do away with gadgets and play traditional games like Ashta Chemma, Pacchisi etc. These apart, pokers, ludo, monopoly, board games are a good option to de-stress and build a sense of teamwork among the family members,” says P Srinivas Reddy, Regional Sales Manager of Cholamandalam Investment and Finance Company Limited.
A few others are coming up with innovative means of spending time and bonding with other family members. Given the nuclear family practice, many children tend to miss or ignore the value of relationship with cousins, uncles and aunts and their grandparents.
Nuclear family has its own advantages and disadvantages. In many families, children get to spend to time with grandparents or other family members only during summer holidays or any occasions. To ensure the attachment is in place and grows further, people are coming up with new ideas.
Prathuyusha, a housewife, is making it a point to browse through old photo albums of the family, wedding videos of family members and even pictures of past vacations.
“Since the lockdown, we are speaking with our immediate relatives a lot over phone, enquiring about their wellbeing and recalling the good times. And, it is helping in strengthening the emotional bond between each other,” she adds.
For Suresh Reddy, a dentist, with plenty of time on hand, he is managing to keep his garden neat and trim the wild growth, plant new seeds and so on.
“The idea is to make my children value the importance of food and the hard work put in by farmers in cultivating grains and vegetables. And, more importantly, the value of greenery,” says Reddy.
And for youngsters, especially employees, the lockdown is helping them acquire new skills and complete pending tasks. Sai Harsha, a private employee, is acquiring new skills and attending personality development sessions online.
“Apart from physical wellbeing, I am trying to new learn skills and stay mentally fit through yoga and meditation,” he says.
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