Last week, I watched The Shawshank Redemption again. The hardship Andy undergoes in prison is heart-wrenching. His great escape, the way he sustains himself during his long years in prison and his unbroken hope that one day he will live a fruitful life in the coastal Mexican town of Zihuatanejo are highly relevant to mankind today.
This unexpected pandemic has put each one of us in our own personal prisons. How we have longed to be at home! How much we have hated commuting to our offices, schools and colleges! Now when forced to remain home day in and day out, with our family, how we long to get out of it! Is this nature’s way of healing the world from the menace of man?
Our homes are our prison, let us repent leisurely now for all our follies. Let us not take undue advantage of the bountiful nature. Let us not test her patience.
Under pressure
Talking about patience, women in India are faced with a tough situation as never before. They have their hands full these days.
Women work like mavericks to balance their work and home. Looming large behind everyone is the fear of pandemic. Of course, men are slowly becoming aware of the drudgery that goes into the life of women at home. Just as Andy found solace in his friendship with Red, let us all find solace in the good relationship that we can maintain with our loved ones. Let us vow not to repeat our mistakes. People have become so conscious of what they eat these days. Never have we cared to eat immune-boosting food as we do now. Is this not a great beginning? Let us continue this trend.
We have also become acutely aware of our mental health. We know how frustrating it is to remain in the same place for months and years together. The nomadic travelling gene that has been passed over to us through centuries keeps crying inside us, just waiting for a chance to break out. At the end of the day, the greatest duty of a living organism is to live and so is it with humans too.
Let nothing come in the way of our hopes. Like Andy, let our resilience be intact while we fight this pandemic. Let us know to preserve our self-worth even when we are placed in the toughest situations.
Let us all dream about a Zihuatanejo just as Andy did.
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