In 2019, I was preparing for the biggest moment of my life that would set the course for my future and lay the foundation of my destiny - my MYP and IGCSE examinations. Until last month, I was very exhausted because there was nothing else to do except reading school books, do homework and prepare for tests. I was caught in a vicious routine of home and school and sometimes I felt I had been in the same room for almost 15 hours. During this time, I was struggling to spend more time with my family as well but it was hard due to the fact that every day there used to be something new popping up on our Managebac. Nonetheless, I tried to spend as much time as I could with my family and be a more involved part of our household. 

 

In the past four months, some very dangerous and unbelievable global events occurred, such as the Amazon fires, the Australian fires, floods and many other disasters. Today, an invisible enemy of life has come into play called Coronavirus, which feels like a sign from God to us human beings to slow down and reflect on how our actions have impacted life on this planet. 

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A few weeks ago, I was preparing for an exam and heard the news about the lockdown. 

I asked my father, “What’s going on dad? Why are our schools and your offices being shut down?” 

My father replied, “It’s the coronavirus and we have been forced to lockdown ourselves in our houses”.

I was extremely horrified and shocked that our nation was forced into a lockdown where we all would be trapped in our homes with no sense and right of freedom. Due to this virus, all my plans have been spoiled which I had set up for this year. The outbreak of this dangerous virus came at the moment when I was giving my mock exams and I am still shocked that something as minuscule as a virus, which cannot even be seen with the naked eye, can bring the whole world to a halt. This invisible enemy has forced people to change the way of their lives and, most importantly, made us human beings so helpless that we ourselves have become dangerous for every single person out there. As I gave each mock exam, deep inside I hoped that this pandemic would vanish as quickly as it came. 

 

It is devastating to know this disease is not only affecting our lifestyles, it is also killing thousands of people all over the world. The world’s most civilized economies, like the United States of America, China, European Union and the United Kingdom are all suffering. And this affected me deeply too. As per my plan, as soon as my final exams finished, I was looking forward to seeing my aunt and cousin coming from the UK. Last week when the news came that final exams will be cancelled, I got to know that my aunt will be unable to come as most of the countries in Europe are being forced into lockdown. I was sad that all my plans had been changed and I would have to spend this time at home and not even be able to meet my friends from school. 

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My whole routine had been spoiled as I had a habit of waking up at 6 am in the morning every day, and getting dressed for school but now that routine was gone and I felt that I had lost a very special part of me. I wasn’t even able to see my own friends or talk to them and I missed the time in school with them when we used to joke around, have fun with each other and play sports together. However, on the brighter side, I am happy because I do get to spend time with my father. It was impossible to do so when I was attending school and preparing for exams. Now I feel that God has given my family and I an opportunity to spend time together and build deeper relationships. 

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If I look at the situation, it is not ideal as I am still not able to get the right of freedom but I feel that I am not the only one suffering due to this. The whole world is going through this terrible situation and nothing but staying at home is the solution. People are dying due to this virus and it has been given names, such as the invisible silent killer. It is such a disease that even a person doing well can pass it on to another who can die just because his immune system could not fight it. Every person is dangerous to the other. Therefore, we have to think about ourselves as well as others, so that we do not become a carrier of the disease. 

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At the start, I only used to think about my own self, on how I would survive this catastrophe but now I am starting to feel for those who are going through more than I have been through and I am grateful to God for what I have been blessed with. I do not have to worry about blessings like food and other necessities because of the lockdown but there are millions of people who will have to put their health at stake to make ends meet. I called our house help who was unable to come due to the lockdown. I asked about her health, she said: “I am quite worried about the situation as I’m unable to get the necessities for daily use”. It made me sad to hear about the situation. She said, “I couldn’t’ get milk for the kids”. I discussed it with my mother and we bought some groceries for them and sent some money. I know how important it is to ensure that they and their families don’t sleep hungry during these testing times, 

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I dream waking up to the news of the disappearance of the virus so that everybody can go back to their peaceful lives, people going back to offices for work so they can earn money and children going back to their routine. I am a strong believer that God put us in this situation to test us and He will show us the path to fight it too. Nonetheless, this is an opportunity for all of us to think about every other human being. And this can only be done by staying at home and reaching out to those who need help in any way possible. I do not fear death, but I fear being answerable in front of God of what I did for others during this hard time.