Taste of sustainability

We are witnessing a tragedy that has befallen the human race in an unprecedent manner. The spread, heavy containment methods and no known treatment make this pandemic difficult to tackle. Many of the countries are trying to limit the reach of each individual by limiting contact. This has taken the form of lockdown , a word that has entered our vocabulary rather recently. This resembles pausing our tape recorders. Our life has paused and whatever part of it is still moving involves precaution of tiring proportions. Suddenly the decision of the government to rerun television classics of 90's makes this tape recorder rather run in a backward motion! However while we are locked down in our houses, there are subtle changes taking place within and without. The nature of the adversity makes it a war between a virus and human race. Social Psychology talks about creating supergoals for grouping and regrouping. We often see how our prejudices against a person can thaw if we are made to be in a group together against another group. Fighting this virus is a supergoal at this moment. And we are all together in this ,as one team. Isn't that something that could never be achieved!Climate change, for instance could be a supergoal but unfortunately its remoteness in terms of visibility and effect could never make it one. Corona virus has brought the ocean of humanity both together and to its ebb. Countries are helping each other, learning from each other and advising each other. There are unusual international 'thank yous' happening on social media. In India, States and Centre seem to be genuinely cooperating and a better version of politics is at display. This is desirable. Infact I wish to put these changes on a scale. A scale of sustainability. Here sustainability stands for all those attitudes and activities that promote our mental calm and physical health and make us good humans. We might not have been at the lowest but we were operating somewhere near the unsustainsble end of it. With lockdown we have been suddenly moved to the other extreme of it just like a pendulam. This could have never happened in normal course. We are at home and spending quality time with family- eating , cooking , playing and what not. Social distancing has made us distance ourselves from the maids, unthinkable it was though. So people are helping each other and carrying out the household chores together. Some are revisiting their hobbies and some are developing new ones. We are living uber sustainable and near utopian relationships.
We are eating healthy to build immunity that fights for us. Intermittent notifications from Dep of AYUSH keeps the thing going. Secondly hotels and restaurants are out of reach. Also the aura of fear has made delivery of food nearly non existent. On the scale of sustainability, food habits are at its best. People are following quarantine rules. This is the best example of our dependence on the goodness of strangers.
Gratitude posts and acknowleging the services of doctors, nurses, police, delivery guys is common. People are garlanding sanitation workers. Food packets are being sent to casual workers and the homeless. Wherever are the caste and religious boundaries melting! The most desirable of humanity is popping up in Facebook feeds. As far as our environment is concerned, dolphins could be seen offshore Mumbai, the faded himachal mountains are visible from Jhalandhar and air quality index is improving in Delhi. Only essential economic activity is taking place. Was everything else non essential! We are at the best of hygiene. And this other end of the scale is nearly utopian ,most sustainable and yet most unsustainable. Though some may say that this is what was missing , the warmth and laughter is returning but it is so would this change our lifestyle once things normalize. Remember this is the life of 'pause'. We can't sit back and watch ramayana and circus all day. Life will move on after the pause and the rush of cars and adrenaline would resume soon. But when we restart we would have in our near memory a picture of the most sustainable. The dolphins would turn away but we would know that they exist somewhere around and we may beckon them if we mend our ways a little. Chilling out may still be preferred but we would know that a cozy time at home with pakoras and tea would also be cherished. We would know that the world wouldn't fall apart if domestic help does not turn up .The taste of this lockdown might just widen various possibilities for us and push us a little if not more towards sustainable living. I hope it does. Meanwhile stay home, stay safe and bake cakes.