Tag: COVID-19 in the Philippines

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One Year in Quarantine: Musings and Learnings

Sitting at my workstation waiting for the coffee to finish brewing while starting my laptop for work, I think about how much life has changed though it seemed the same. We’d go about our day as before — meet deadlines at work, look after our family, walk or run or do a few minutes of yoga or Zumba some days of the week, catch up with friends and other loved ones — and yet, all these we do now on a different plane.

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One Year Since Lockdown: Where are We?

A new year usually meant a new beginning, a time of refreshing in which we leave behind the year that had gone before and look forward to the days ahead. Whenever a new year would roll around, I would take out my planner and list down all the things I want to do that year – travel, attend concerts, figure out what I want to be. For the past few years of my life, it had always been this way.

This year was different.

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World Vision Study Reveals Top Concerns of Filipino Families During Pandemic

Food insecurity, disrupted education and limited access to healthcare are the topmost concerns of Filipino families affected by the pandemic, according to a recent countrywide survey conducted by World Vision.

After the Department of Health (DOH) declared the COVID-19 situation as a national health emergency in March, World Vision, with the help of its partners, sponsors and volunteers, immediately mobilized its emergency response to assist vulnerable families and communities and to strengthen the capacity of the health providers, especially on the frontlines.

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When the World Paused

Taking a time out is not something new to many of us. It’s certainly not something new to me. I’ve made it a practice to pause once in a while. You know, step out of the little bubble we’ve created and take stock of what we do or not do, where we fail or need to do better, what else needs to be done, how all these relate to the bigger picture. As we’ve been told several times when we were younger, one needs to be silent from time to time to be able to listen to the other things not spoken or not said too loudly. Pretty much like walking slowly sometimes to be able to smell the flowers.

The pause of these past months is a totally different story, however. Not only was it a pause imposed on us at a time we didn’t expect but it was also something we had no control over. We had no idea how long it would take and until now, we don’t know how long we will have to stay indoors and limit our exposure outside. As much as some of us may thrive in the short pauses life allows now and then, this pause caused by the pandemic is far from being reinvigorating.

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Shifting to the New Normal: Changing Perspectives and Behaviors

What have we been doing these past two and a half months in restricted living? How is quarantine life changing us? How ready are we to go out there again?

Having more free time than usual is certainly getting us doing more thinking and asking, yes, than usual. When done with WFH duties, in between Skype, Viber or Zoom meetings, after exercising, meditating, reading, gardening, writing, binge watching and all the other new hobbies we’ve developed, we find our thoughts moving to all sorts of directions and raising questions, mainly about what life would be after quarantine. These random thoughts attack with more intensity on weekends and all chores are done and we just sit in front of the TV or computer counting the hours away.

Riding the roller coaster of thoughts and emotions while stuck at home, we’ve certainly realized the advantages and disadvantages of this temporary quarantine life. Even as we get bored or feel anxious about our health and finances, we have more time for ourselves and with family. We are able to catch up on things and activities we have put on the backburner for so long. We can think more about our plans for the future: Students can think about what they really want to do. Young professionals can reflect on where they want to take their career and how. Businesses and organizations can assess their strengths and weaknesses and start working on whatever necessary changes they need to secure long-term viability.

But then our thoughts turn again to when returning to normal would be, if at all. When all this is over, how different would post-lockdown life be?

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