Looking Back, Looking Forward: Take a Short Break Before You Begin Again

After months of caution and confinement, Enakshi and her husband, decide to let down their hair. She looks back at the year gone by. She looks forward with hope, exclusively for Different Truths.

With Covid-19 came a mundane and unilateral lifestyle that not only hampered the physical well-being but also the mental well-being of all individuals. Work from home promised nothing but prolonged working hours and extra hours on the couch. The idiot box became our usual companion, eventually making us an idiot (I guess).

And then came a time when people got fed up with masking up, staying apart, and being under lockdown. As the tourist destinations realised that tourism had taken a hard hit, they started inviting people from all directions in the hope of sustaining themselves with the money that people might spend on leisure.

Following this, the Covid-19 cases started rising rapidly and those destinations were shut again for a brief period and then re-opened. Now that Christmas is just over and New Year is around the corner, hill stations have been seeing an inflow of tourists who are not visiting for the purpose of exploring the place in this bone-chilling weather but to just take a break from the exhaustive and monotonous schedule that they have been following for a long time!

Last weekend, my husband and I also visited a hill station near our hometown. The rigorous work schedule had kept us restricted to our chairs for an awfully long time. It came as a shock to us when we realised that we had not stepped out for a night out or trip for more than nine months!

We took this trip just to enjoy a relaxing weekend and bask in the sun when the temperature dropped to freezing point. This was new for us because we are adventurous and like travelling at jet-speed. We seldom spend an extra hour at the hotel relaxing, we do not sit by the lake to watch the sunset. What we generally do is make a fool-proof itinerary and spend time exploring the hidden places and sticking to the schedule. This does not mean that we do not enjoy it. We do because that is what gives us the pleasure of travelling.

But this new idea of spending a relaxing weekend watching the heaven shower umpteen number of stars on the shivering water of the lake or watching the huge green trees covered with freckles when the sun shone on them was new. There were so many quaint spots and we spent time (literally) doing nothing. At times, I was prompted to ask my husband if we were doing it right or if we were whiling away time. But he assured me that it was fine (for this one time) to go slow and enjoy the motionless ride.

What I did realise during this trip was the importance of observation skills and the fact that it is okay to slow down occasionally. This year has already put all our lives at a standstill, but it would be wrong to continue living the same way. It is not advised to venture out and invite the virus straight into your lives.

But yes, occasionally, it is imperative to step out, breathe the fresh air, isolate yourself from the stressful life, and spend some solitary time engaging in activities that give you pleasure and not money. Reading, taking nature walks, taking long siestas, going on a long drive with your partner, or just staying wrapped in a blanket are some of the brilliant ideas of taking a break and rejuvenating your soul.

Humans are the most intelligent beings, and it would not be long when we will be able to go out without the fear of falling sick. Till then, take out time to appreciate other things that have been left outside the four walls of the house for a long time. Enjoy the winters, share love, gift yourself memories, and spend quality time with yourself.

Once the pandemic comes to an end, only the ones with a healed soul will have the vigour to go out and enjoy again. The ones who will annihilate their spirits during these trying times will find it even more difficult to feel alive again.

Visuals by Different Truths