Waiting to Unlock Life

February 2020.

That’s when Kia and I came to India after completing our six years of stay in the US. We had planned to stay here for around two months for my sister’s wedding, which was scheduled in late February. Meanwhile, my husband had gone for a short trip to Toronto, Canada, to set things up as we were supposed to move there after our vacation in India. He joined us later somewhere in mid-February. Everything about this vacation was perfect. We were having a great time with our families and enjoying all the wedding preparations.

Before leaving the US, I was really worried about how Kia will handle the 24-hour long journey (she was always scared of flying) and change in the environment. But, she never fails to surprise me! She was absolutely fun to travel with. I don’t know how her fear of flying had magically vanished! She enjoyed every bit of the long flight and also asked me when she will get to air travel next time! Kids can be so unpredictable! My worries about her reaction to having so many people around her (especially during the wedding) were also dismissed by seeing her mingling with the entire family so well. It was as if she had been around them forever!

It was the day of the wedding, and we had a great time. My sister looked beautiful and happy. Four days of wedding ceremonies were full of fun and enough to make us very tired. After taking rest for a few days, we traveled to another city to be with my in-laws. We could only spend a week with them as we had to be back in Mumbai to catch our flight to Toronto scheduled seven days later. Once back, it was time to pack our bags again. Starting a life altogether in a new place with no family and friends around can be a bit intimidating. But, we were ready for this. Happy and excited!

And then, life happened.

The Indian government announced a 21-day nationwide lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic starting 25th March 2020. All flights were canceled and suspended indefinitely. Needless to say, we had to cancel our tickets, not knowing when we will be able to book them again. Initially, we felt it was just a matter of a month or so, and then we could fly to Toronto. I thought it was nice to have an extra month to spend time with my parents. However, as days passed by and the number of COVID-19 cases kept on rising in the country, that’s when we realized we were stuck. I mean, REALLY STUCK.

Time passed as slowly as it could. Initially, it felt like a long staycation with family, food, and fun with hopes of lockdown ending soon. But our hopes were shattered when the lockdown was extended one after the other. It’s been five months since the first lockdown, and we are still here.

Waiting.

COVID-19 has disrupted lives all over the globe. I don’t think there is anyone who has not been impacted by it. We have been too. After five months of waiting to fly to Toronto, we may now have to drop the plan to move altogether. My husband may be asked to stay back as we are stuck here.

So, this is how it is. I, my husband, and Kia are waiting to know what the future holds for us. Even though we wanted to move to Toronto, staying back in India, if we have to, will be good. When the world is in such a crisis, when you don’t know what will happen next, and life is so uncertain, it is comforting to know you are close to your family and friends.

Let’s see which turn our life takes. This lockdown has changed a lot of things in this world, and now we have to see what it has in store for us. Just hoping, whatever happens is for good. And I hope we can unlock our life soon and get back on track just how the world is trying to unlock amidst all the lockdowns.

P.S. Post written in August, 2020. Took a while to publish it. Didn’t know launching a blog takes time. 🙂