Corona Ward Diary

The hospital staff received us with warmth; they put me and my mother in separate, spacious wards. The clock ticks faster for the caregivers, slows down for those like me waiting for the storm to pass. This abundance of time let me look around, observe things closely, introspect, aside from reading books, watching movies and doing the regular stuff that one does to battle boredom. But one thing kept bothering me—my Zen-like composure in the clutch of a deadly disease. I spent hours thinking. Then it dawned on me that such hermitic peace of mind was possible because of the affectionate care of some noble souls. The dedication of nurses who ensured I took my bedtime medicines; the ward boys who dashed to our aid to ease the slightest of discomfort at the oddest of hours. And of course, the kindhearted Dr Mrs Sushila Kataria, whose motherly care and encouraging words would make worries disappear and leave us with hope higher than the tallest mountains.

I have met doctors with flawless expertise and professional excellence, but what sets Dr Kataria apart is that she goes beyond professional obligations to give emotional support to her patients. She would meet us post-dinner to check our progress, kindling the conversation on a lighter note, asking, for instance, about my morning online classes and what I did afterwards. I could have cited ill-health to miss classes and my school would have definitely considered that as a justifiable reason. But it was solely due to Dr Kataria that this indolent boy and habitual procrastinator regularly attended classes. She could calm her patients, reignite hope for a speedy recovery, and figure out issues of even the most introvert and inexpressive patient, my father being one. She would always be accurate in her observations and advice. I can unabashedly call my time in hospital a boon in disguise. It taught me more than it made me suffer. It taught me that even in this age of treachery and deceit, there are altruistic people devoted to serving humanity. People like Dr Kataria and her staff are examples of how to spread positivity and help pass the toughest of times. This enriching experience would remain etched in my memory for life. People like Dr Kataria reprised my faith in the fact that goodness will prevail till eternity.

I knew on Day One that quarantine would be a long, boring haul. Time was my biggest adversary, but I stole a march over it with the TV remote as helpmate. My watch-list included Aarya, a web series that has Sushmita Sen in the lead. The story is woven around a Rajput family in Rajasthan that uses a pharmaceutical plant as a front to hustle narcotics. The story turns when the protagonist’s (Sushmita) husband dies and she takes the lead. It’s an intense crime thriller worth a watch. Among the movies, I caught up with Catch Me If You Can and The Great Gatsby, starring Leornado DiCaprio in both. I particularly liked the one based on Scott Fitzgerald’s novel because Gatsby exuded hope and positivity.

I had books to give me company. I read Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World by Jack Weatherford—which is about the rise and fall of the Mongol empire. But only half of it is on Genghis’s life, strange considering the title. The book tells us how the brutal Mongols united almost the entire Eurasia, brought significant changes across two continents, and Genghis’s actions and accomplishments founded the medieval world’s style of war and politics. Book No. 2 was The Art of War by Sun Tzu. The techniques keep changing, but the basic principles or fundamentals of life and war never do. These are simple, but tough to follow. Devdutt Patnaik’s Jaya was next—the most important as it aroused a spiritual curiosity within me. I found answers I was seeking in this book, the silent and isolated environment of the ward helping my cause.