Hey there! How are you doing? I see you are ready to scroll through this article. So, let me first introduce myself. I am Haath! Yeah, yeah, the Hindi word for hand.
I am tired now. My human gave me a bath 7-8 times today. She does not let me touch other humans. She literally dips me in some gel, which smells funny. I feel suffocated, man! She even covers her face with a black mask. Has she joined an underworldly religion? I mean, she keeps saying words like ‘corona.’ Never heard that before!
My human is acting weird. She washes me for 20 seconds each time. She would never do that earlier. I have heard there’s a special way of washing creatures like me, prescribed by the World Health Organisation (WHO). Rub the palms first, then interlock the fingers… blah, blah, blah. You may wonder how I know this. Well, I grab a chance to read whenever possible.
Anyway, my human is following instructions. I saw her reading through information put up by the Government of India, like coughing or sneezing into your elbow or using disposable tissues. I almost fainted.
I mean, itna kaun padhta hai yaar? (who reads so much all the time?) And that gel I was talking about… my human has a dozen bottles at home. If she buys up everything, what will others do? How will they protect my fellow haaths?
With my limited understanding, I feel there’s an epidemic around the world. I peeped into my human’s phone and found there are over 50 cases in India, but more than a lakh cases globally. WHO is close to calling it a pandemic – a disease prevalent over a whole country or the world. It’s an SOS situation now.
But I am glad government agencies are doing their best to control this epidemic and create awareness. I overheard some announcement over the phone when my human called up her friend. Chalo, achcha hai! (Well, that’s good!)
How do I feel through all this, you ask? I am glad I am receiving some attention. Earlier, my human would seldom wash me before eating or drinking. My self-esteem was low since childhood. Itni beizzati hui hai (I’ve been insulted many times). I mean, she could have given me a bath even when there was no pandemic. But, better late than never.
I am hoping my fellow haaths remain safe and don’t carry the damn virus with them. I hope their humans treat them with care the same way my human does.
Sometimes, I feel she’s being selfish to protect herself from the virus. But I am a part of her, and I desire for her to be healthy. Meanwhile, you can go back to what you were doing. And I sincerely hope you take care of your haath too.