I do not like viruses and I am going to tell Corona that I don't like it, stated my daughter with conviction. I wish it go away and never come back and I am going to use my Magic wand and it will die added this little girl of five years. I looked at her lovingly with a 'me too wishes so' reply. Her patience is dying. There is an entire world waiting for her outside - the trees, the bushes, the little creatures, birds, the play park and friends and yet she cannot go. For her the outdoors is like the ice-cream you are not allowed to have.
As a parent, I do not want to build fear in her and at the same time I don't want her to take things casually. I do not want her to have false notions that this is going to end soon and at the same time, I do not want her to give up on hope. I want her to be living each day believing that this is going to end someday and we are going to be able to move and play freely without any fear.
Every few days we look at covid viualiser to check the number of infected people all over the world and also those who have died. The other day she told me that it's okay for people to die as they become stars like her Bono is and her grandparents (Hema aji and Ashok aba) are. When she said this, I got a tiny glimpse into her mind - she was processing so many things, associating them with her past experiences and making sense of everything that going on.
Today, her questions were centered around how her friend could go to her hometown. When I told her that her friend went before the lockdown was declared and is now finding it difficult to come back and that was the case with her other grandmother (Nalu aji) who is stuck in Pune. She went quiet for a while and then came back and shared that the virus is a bad guy and hopes it never comes back.
She often gets frustrated and says that she is bored and wants her usual routine back. She complains for a while and then gets back to playing. Her usual dialogue is, 'Mamma what should I do?' To which I answer, 'Whatever you want to.' The other day she said, 'I can't do what I want to - I can't play with Aadya, I can't go to the garden, I can't go the mall, I cant go to Pune. All I can do in such times is give her a tight hug and say that I feel the same too.
I am sure many parents must be in similar situations. This lockdown is hard for children and yet they display so much resilience. Their mind is actively processing the little bits that they hear, see and feel. They are making meaning of everything around them and these meanings they make are going to shape their notions, perspectives and behavior.
Their boredom gives way to creativity, their inquisitive mind gives way to reasoning and their feelings and thoughts give way to expression.
Originally posted on Facebook on April 17, 2020
As a parent, I do not want to build fear in her and at the same time I don't want her to take things casually. I do not want her to have false notions that this is going to end soon and at the same time, I do not want her to give up on hope. I want her to be living each day believing that this is going to end someday and we are going to be able to move and play freely without any fear. Every few days we look at covid viualiser to check the number of infected people all over the world and also those who have died. The other day she told me that it's okay for people to die as they become stars like her Bono is and her grandparents (Hema aji and Ashok aba) are. When she said this, I got a tiny glimpse into her mind - she was processing so many things, associating them with her past experiences and making sense of everything that going on.
Today, her questions were centered around how her friend could go to her hometown. When I told her that her friend went before the lockdown was declared and is now finding it difficult to come back and that was the case with her other grandmother (Nalu aji) who is stuck in Pune. She went quiet for a while and then came back and shared that the virus is a bad guy and hopes it never comes back.
She often gets frustrated and says that she is bored and wants her usual routine back. She complains for a while and then gets back to playing. Her usual dialogue is, 'Mamma what should I do?' To which I answer, 'Whatever you want to.' The other day she said, 'I can't do what I want to - I can't play with Aadya, I can't go to the garden, I can't go the mall, I cant go to Pune. All I can do in such times is give her a tight hug and say that I feel the same too.
I am sure many parents must be in similar situations. This lockdown is hard for children and yet they display so much resilience. Their mind is actively processing the little bits that they hear, see and feel. They are making meaning of everything around them and these meanings they make are going to shape their notions, perspectives and behavior.
Their boredom gives way to creativity, their inquisitive mind gives way to reasoning and their feelings and thoughts give way to expression.
Originally posted on Facebook on April 17, 2020
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