Look closely: There is a lesson in every atom around!

COVID times, we all were not prepared for it. It is once in a lifetime kind of situation for most of us. Amidst fear and anxiety of this invisible enemy, we are in a zone of perfect amorphousness. Amorphous as you correctly recalled, is a state of having no particular pattern. And that is what our lives have become. Indeterminate in professional and personal compartments.

One such lockdown restriction imposed or advisory generated was to stop allowing anyone inside our homes. That included maids, cooks, babysitters, gardeners, caregivers to name a few. My family was also not an exception and we distributed or rather negotiated or honestly at times pleaded to perform household chores. That will be a topic in future from my side. But today, I would like to share with you all my learning that I could embrace while I did all such household activities. As the title says, even an atom has so much to offer which is why it occupied Rutherford, Dalton and Bohr for the major of their lives.

In no particular order, I will start my learning with dish washing. Indian homes cannot escape from the stains that curries can leave on our cookware. Or that cheesy pasta that you had last friday night. So, while we clean such utensils there is going to be a situation, the harder you scrub, the more you curse yourself for not dipping them in enough of water. So, what you do next: you soak them in water and keep it aside for sometime. And during your next round, you can easily scrap off the remains. Learning achieved here: Some problems can only be solved with time and right approach. Time is the biggest healer and resources (approach) are the catalyst to accelerate the eventual success.

Next is sweeping and mopping. When we started sweeping and mopping, we felt like no one can do this so impeccably. The floor tiles were shining like they can give the best marbles a run for their money. But what happens when you start procrastinating and skip a day or two. Day three, again you have to put equal and rather more efforts to bring that spotlessness. Learning achieved here: If you maintain your consistency and perseverance, it will be easy, easier and easiest. The moment you take the luxury to skip your mandatory tasks, it piles up like anything. If we don't take time on a regular basis to ace up our skill set, there is no denying that we will be outdated pretty soon than we could fathom.

Breaking own comfort zone was another learning for me. Thinking that how would we manage without domestic helps gave me sleepless nights. Day 1 was tough, Week 1 was tough, Week 2 was not that tough, and 1 month went by. By this time, when moon had revolved around the earth 30 times, we figured out our routines, the value of reusing the same glass for having water throughout the day or sharing the meals in lesser utensils or be mindful of dust entering during pre-monsoon winds. Learning achieved here: With time and patience, we can master anything and everything given the right intent and execution.

Thankfully, my locality maintained the green zone status against COVID and the authorities gave us back the permission to have the maids back after the due medical checks. But when I look back the learning that I could achieve by observing the real life around, I felt more rich and more empowered.

My readers, hope you enjoyed this piece. Please share your learning too in the comments. Till then, wish you safety and sound immunity. Happy learning!