Other People (Day 119 of lockdown)

An exchange in our home, recently, after we'd cooked one of our new dishes :
Daughter: Ooh, this tastes like other people's food.
Me: We are other people.

We looked at each other, realising how unintentionally profound that had been. Knowing my daughter, she probably high-fived me.

I love the fact that, under lockdown, I'm not obliged to interact face-to-face with too many people. It turns out, the virtual world has distinct benefits - especially for introverts. But I also love checking in with my friends, either on the phone, texting on WhatsApp or e-mailing, to hear how each one is handling this time of life. 

I'm very aware that not everyone is going through lockdown comfortably, and that for many people lockdown has been the harshest blow. I'm exceptionally lucky to be employed, to be able to keep up with my overheads, and to have wifi and all that it enables. I'm also lucky that the nature of my job lends itself to working remotely. I can't believe it took a global pandemic for us to see how ridiculous it was to continue working the way we had been - especially sitting in air-conditioned offices and crawling along in insane peak traffic, twice a day.

Almost overnight, the world changed. It changed how it went about its business. It changed how we worked, how we communicated, how we taught, how we shopped, how we connected with loved ones, how we entertained ourselves, how entertainers found audiences, how we exercised, how we channelled our creativity, how we held meetings, conferences, launches and concerts - and so much more.

And, in the process, as the world changed and people started using the term, "the new normal", we changed. We spent more time in our gardens or backyards, we slowed down and read more, we put effort into cooking more interesting meals, we took up hobbies, we started new forms of exercise, we watched different movies, we learnt new skills - all the time evolving, shifting, learning to go where the current took us, because that's what we needed to do, to survive.

Physically, many of us have changed. Some have gained weight, most have longer hair. Many men now wear beards, simply out of necessity. People talk about how they wear slouchy clothes all the time, and some women say they've ditched wearing bras.

I'm more interested in the other changes - the invisible ones. I know for a fact that I'm undergoing major changes in how I view life - and my life, in particular. I'll be 59 in 7 weeks' time, which is an age at which we think about what we've achieved, what our legacies will be, and what else we could possibly achieve, to leave a better legacy. We look back at our choices, celebrate the ones that worked out well and try to forgive ourselves for the ones that didn't.

Today is Day 119 of lockdown, in South Africa. They say it takes 21 days to form a habit. I know I've forged a whole new set of habits, under lockdown, and I know I'm not the same person I was 120 days ago. Do I like this Trudy? Ja - I actually do. She's used the time to do a lot of introspection and has sorted through some clutter, both physical and emotional. She's learnt to relinquish control over certain parts of her life and to embrace change, like never before. She knows it's a journey and that there'll be detours along the way, but she's keeping an open mind.

Most importantly, she's living every day to the fullest - exploring, learning, immersing herself in what she loves, and understanding, more than ever before, that pouring yourself into a few things that bring you true joy is far more meaningful than anything money could ever buy.