The old beggar, our #Psychology of #Senses and #covidrestrictions

It is believed that the sense of?smell?is closely linked with?our memories and can trigger flashbacks of some good or bad memories, sometimes even more so than any of our other senses (however I still argue with myself about this). The same is when you eat a food that can take you back in the midst of times when you first tasted or relate it to a person who prepared it or maybe a place where you ate it for the very first time.

And the same is when you hear specific noises and sounds and relate them with situations which you have had been in the past.

From my childhood memories, I recall the unique sound of a musical instrument that an old beggar used to strum in the streets while asking for some financial help. I was 5 or 6 years old when his Sage/Sufi like appearance didn’t make sense to me and I used to get terrified every time I hear him.

For some reason (a child’s brain isn’t it!), I used to think that he can be harmful or kidnap and take me away somewhere. I ran inside the house trying to find the most unusual hiding spots such as empty cardboard boxes or even suitcases in the storeroom just to feel a sense of safety and security for myself. I remember calling in my cousins (who were almost the same age as me) to make sure they were safe. There always was a feeling that I have to keep myself and the people around me innocuous from him. I recall telling my cousins to hide at different spots, so hypothetically even he finds one of us the others can stay protected and unharmed.

I used to call him “The Old Stringsie” (now this name doesn’t even make sense, it’s not even a?word – but it used to make a lot of sense back then - his musical instrument was made of strings)

In a few weeks, I started getting used to the sound of his music and his physical appearance and I started missing the routine if he ever skipped a week or showed up late. My fear was almost gone, and I was no longer terrified, I started ignoring him. Eventually, he stopped coming around.

Joining links with that experience, today a lot of us are concerned about the coronavirus and the lockdown situation. Going back to early 2020, a lot of us were totally following the government’s guidelines and quickly contained ourselves and our families in our own shells and avoided going out. Just like when a tortoise sense danger around him he gets inside his hard shell and hides. It reminds me of running inside the house and hiding just by sensing a hint of danger. It’s the same as self-isolation and staying away from the contagiousness.

Then time goes on and you get used to the “norm” and your human mind and senses start absorbing your coexistence with the harm outside and you end up living without the fear. I have read many conspiracy theories and over a dozen collusive posts on social media claiming the whole situation a hoax created by the world rulers (No, I do not agree with any), but this is what’s negatively impacting our wider population today.

Exactly how I started getting used to the beggar’s music and his existence, a lot of us are now used to the fear of COVID-19 and not continuing to hide inside our shells. Every now and then the media reports of students partying and having large crowds defying and breaching the rules of isolation and weddings, funerals and “other” social gatherings taking place throughout the country.

If these restrictions are followed, then we can always beat this global pandemic and control the virus spread, the daily infection and deaths. I have seen so many families lost their loved ones and the grief is beyond description. We must continue doing what we can to contain the situation and then, of course, we can always enjoy the freedom that a lot of us talk about.

Going back to *The Old Stringsie*, once again I saw him after around a few years but in a different, new attire – running his own fruit stall. Something positive as he didn’t just stick to a dejected lifestyle and thrived to earn a decent living. This gave me a whole new meaning of challenging situations in life and I started believing in progression and going against the flow and not with it.

Yes, with his example I never give up to any situation because there are hope and light at the end of the tunnel.

Life will bounce back; humankind will have a great comeback. Let’s do all we can, and we should.