CHENNAI : The last time I went out of our apartment complex was on March 18, 2020…to the nearby park and then to the supermarket with my mother. I am generally the type who always wants to be out of home — at school, playing out with friends, and at outings with my parents. But when Amma and Appa told me about the dangerous coronavirus and its spread, I was fine with staying at home.
The first few days were a little difficult. I used to feel restless and wanted to go out at least once a day. Gradually, I started adjusting and feeling okay. I came to know during these ‘holidays’ itself that I have been promoted from UKG to class 1, which made me very happy. During these days at home, I am following a timetable which has a mix of study time, play time (with my toys and indoor games with my parents), TV time, food time and rest/sleep time. On some evenings, I go to the terrace with my Amma and/or Appa just to get some cool breeze.
Since I like drawing, Amma and Appa have devised a daily ‘5 minutes draw’ contest for me. They ask me various questions (one question per day) like what I want to do, where I want to go, what outside food I want to eat, whom I want to see etc. immediately after this ‘holiday’ ends. And I have to draw the answer in five minutes. It’s fine even if I take 10 minutes sometimes. This exercise is fun and I enjoy it a lot. Nowadays, I feel really good staying at home, the main reason being that both my parents are with me throughout these days.
(Write to cityexpresschn@gmail.com and tell us how you are spending the lockdown.)