Chapter 12: chapter 12

People avoided places where huge gatherings took place. The first wave of the virus had left a serious imprint on the minds of the people. It was unfathomable to comprehend the grief of those who had lost their near and dear. It had been difficult to perform the customary last rites or see the deceased for one last time. The engagement and wedding rituals too were performed virtually through a zoom call or google meet. This gives me a chance to ponder, "If this type of wedding carries on till eternity, a lot of money would be saved to secure the future of a bride and a load of spending lavishly  to satisfy the wants of the new relatives would be reduced for the bride's or groom's parents." The news was reported from the sources that a new variant of the coronavirus known as 'omicron' was spreading rapidly in the air. Many countries were hit adversely. It was hard to believe such kind of things but precautions need to be observed. The news had brought alive the trauma and insecurities of the lockdown and infection once more but silently. Still, some areas were undermining the constraints. There was an abrupt spread of the virus in the market. Every day we got to hear someone or the other was hit with the virus and so and so died of covid. My husband proposed to his ageing parents to stay at home. The death rates were scaring him. My father-in-law brushed aside all his protests saying, "When all the neighbourhood shops observe a shutdown then only we will think of keeping our shops closed. The income of the helpers in your mother's shop is not steady. We need to keep it open in terms of sustainability. Now nobody is keeping their shop shut, government is not objecting." My husband said politely to make him understand, "Papa, let the others do what they want, don't risk your life. If you live longer you have high time to learn. I am there to secure your future. You have already toiled all your life. Now it's time to rest. Please stay at home and ask mummy so to do so. Don't wait for the regulations. " However, it's very difficult to subdue my in-laws. Nobody could waver in their decision and it became a liability to abide by their reaction considering them the reverential elders. Meanwhile, the covid vaccine arrived in India. The elderly population of the country above 60 years was being vaccinated. The offsprings were doubtful to get their older parents vaccinated. Again a role reversal where the youths needed to vaccinate their parents.There was a mild rumour that the vaccine was not safe and it was risky to get injected at the cost of one's life. The medical frontiers were the first to receive their first shots because they were the ones who were struggling with the covid patients day in and day out keeping their lives at stake. Even though many lost their precious lives like brave soldiers serving their country exclusively while fighting the virus. The condition was like a war exploding the peace and harmony of a country. The doctors and policemen were the frontline soldiers protecting the country. Masks,  sanitisers and vaccines were the primary weapons to fight. The inflicted persons were the real warrior fighting between life and death. The news channels were doing their best in furnishing terror among citizens keeping all updated with the latest happenings. The cases reported, the patients recovered and the death ratio was checked religiously by people to keep themselves updated. At a point in time, it became difficult to distinguish between real and fake news due to the fake circulation of messages regarding the vaccine and the virus. The government had to issue a strict notification prohibiting the circulation of false or half information.