Nasra Al Adawi
Writer and poet (OMAN)
COVID-19 has brought in both good and bad aspects to my life. While on one hand I am beleaguered by uncertainties, on the other, I feel I am also blessed in many ways.
An unpredictable period
When I say, “uncertainties”, I mean in terms of the future of our jobs. Since I am working with SMEs, I have a firsthand view of how this corona virus crisis has affected both business owners and the workers alike by creating in them a distinct feeling of uncertainty. It is an unpredictable period and therefore uncertainty looms above all of us.
Moments of bliss
At the other end, especially on a personal front, I had an initial period of bliss with my young children. All of us enjoyed our time out. But, soon, it was apparent that my young kids too were worried about their classes, their school and a lot of related issues. I understand that school also depends on the parents of their students to instill in a certain amount of discipline in them too. But when confronted with a totally new situation of having my children around me on a full time basis, I realised that it was not that easy to instill discipline and the like.
I was happy that the school did not make online attendance mandatory, however learning was provided although there seems to be some backlog, especially in finishing their school requirements.
But the time that I could spend with them was really blissful. This must be one of the first-ever times during an actual school-going season that we could spend so much time with each other. It was like a real holiday, where I gave more than quality time for them.
Post COVID-19 period is a worry
The health crisis has manifested itself into an economic crisis in many countries and in Oman too it is no different. There is great concern with the current affects itself and so I just don’t want to imagine what a post-COVID-19 situation will be like.
Oman has made many positive moves the moment the crisis hit us. The Government spending has been cut down, which though a positive move in the current scenario, it also affects the working of the SMEs.
The government has undertaken great initiatives to support those who are greatly impacted and this is really commendable. But, it worries me to a great deal when I think of how everything will pick up after the corona virus crisis.
A three-tier approach
I truly believe that all of us can make a difference in some way or the other in our own humble way.
I have adopted a three-tier approach taking three important aspects of my life, namely, family (i.e. children), work and of course, writing.
Children
For my children’s sake, I have taken tolerance to new heights. As a parent, I believe that we need to learn to be tolerant towards our children; it will give them the space to grow and learn and understand what life is all about.
Work
Alhamdullillah! Clients are our kings! Whatever happens, we will have to learn to serve our clients despite the challenges.
Writer
As a writer, it is a different world and in a situation like this, there is a reason for despair, but also opportunities galore. We also understand that for writers, innovation is the key. What we did was to introduce free pen-healing sessions to assist those who would like to explore writing in order to help manage their emotions.
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