"Staying Home" is the advice of the Ministry of Health to prevent its spread coronavirus, and to clarify my position from the beginning, he finds me completely in agreement.
With the confirmed outbreaks in Greece to increase day by day and the situation worldwide seems ominous, is the least we can do to help, both ourselves and those around us.
But what happens when someone wants to follow "We Stay Home" but it is not done for practical reasons? What is the situation he faces? And how does it affect him?
So far, social media has been filled with posts by showbiz and non-showbiz representatives, who show how they spend their time indoors.
What is the other side of the coin?
So on the other side is me, and many like me who can not follow the "We live in Spitj », not because they do not want or put their share above the common good, but because the situations do not allow it.
First of all, let me introduce you, to know who you are dealing with. My name is Sofia, I declare myself a journalist and I belong to the category of 35-year-olds. I also belong to the category of people who loathe the mourtzouflia, the anti-social people and the… mirla.
For a few days now, the world community has been "dancing" to the rhythms of the coronavirus and all three that I loathe and mentioned above have overwhelmed us.
We all experience situations unprecedented and of course, anxiety and fear have crept into us.
So my city, Athens, has entered into "quarantine». Everyone is, and rightly so, in their homes under house arrest, following the "We Stay Home" advice.
In my opinion, the most correct was heard from the lips of Mr. Tsiodra in one of his daily updates: Treat ourselves as carriers of the virus and be careful not to transmit it.
Parents, friends, relatives and co-workers, after obtaining the necessities, found themselves in their homes, locked behind their doors and protected from the virus.
They have changed their daily routine, trying to find ways to fill their hours and watching the news on the coronavirus.
But my daily life has also changed. A man who goes out every day, does his shopping at supermarket and socializes -minimal- people. Of course these are done with the necessary precautions and the appropriate doses of antiseptic.
So yes, I go out every day and the reason is one. To protect my own people. Are you confused? You will understand a little below…
What do I see outside? People, measured on the fingers of one hand, who look with suspicion and their eyes are full of sadness… Padlocks everywhere, desolation and loneliness. And yes this fills me with sadness. As much as you want to see things with "another eye" is not possible. But I'm not the only one who has noticed this.
The girls who work in the supermarket in my neighborhood confirm this. "Not a single smile, our optimism is gone…", they tell me sad at every opportunity but making an effort to make me smile. And they want to stay in their homes, to be safe, but they can not since they have to be in their post and serve the public.
"It's good that you are having a good time and you pop and find a smile, Sofaki" was the reaction of the gas saleswoman when I stopped to fill my car with gasoline.
So one reason I'm not locked up at home to watch movies, "Wild Bees(Which I love) and reading books is that my parents belong to vulnerable groups.
So the least I can do to protect them is to "forbid" them to do their shopping and do it myself, to go to the pharmacy, etc. I imagine that these are not unknown to many of you.
Unlike some over 50, who do not miss the opportunity to be in the squares and sunbathe indifferent to the harm they can cause, my parents complied and locked themselves in the house. Coronavirus changed roles. "I do not see you circulating, woe to you!" is now our inside joke to entertain the situation.
And because we like fun as a family we have invented our own way to deliver their shopping.
Basket, strong rope and the improvised construction comes down from the balcony (again good that we do not have skyscrapers in Greece). Shopping goes in the basket and takes the uphill to the house.
Too much; Maybe! But we laugh. The same goes for friends-neighbors. What could be more beautiful than conveying laughter to others in the gloom we experience?
Of course, among the "supplies" are the necessary series and films for which the corresponding commentary falls through video call. After all, how can every retiree fill his time? Do not forget that from an age onwards, "fun" is the walk in the public market and the parade in the supermarkets.
Waiting in line at the supermarket and keeping the necessary safety distance from the front, I observe the reactions of the people. Voices and nerves. Let's not forget that the quarrel is for good in the Greek gene. "Well, do not you see that you are very close? Pull back » to say one. "Me, you came back, will you drive us crazy?".
Things have changed, instead of people fighting over who will get to the box office faster, they are fighting over the distances between them. Of course, this particular quarrel ended… bloodlessly as the coronavirus "lurks" and touches are not allowed.
A lady in her 40s is watching the tension, standing behind me. "What to do; Should I let my parents go out? Of course not. Will I go shopping for them? Do they want bread every day? I. Yoghurt; I. Their favorite sweet? IHe tells me to start a conversation and I realize again that there are many "social" people who still seek daily communication with their fellow human beings and are unable to stay at home.
And this is the second reason I have not been in a 24-hour quarantine. How many people around us need a smile, a reason to gain strength and cope with what has overwhelmed us, how many need our help because they are alone?
Also, when you enter such a situation, when you can not mingle with your circle, you appreciate the sunset that can be seen from your balcony and you see who will "look for" you and especially who you will "look for".
This is exactly what happened to me. These days there were people I did not "look for", I did not think about them, I did not miss them. And so I wondered sadly why. I did not give an answer and I preferred to focus on the other category during these difficult hours. To deal with those I really missed, Marianna, Aphrodite, Nikos, Evi, Vicky, Andreas, George, Dimitris…
One of the positives of… inclusion is that you find time to dig out "treasures" from cupboards, such as these stones that I "marked" with my coworker Marianna, on some summer vacation in Korfos, more than 20 years ago. And somehow we shared, online, our emotion for the past and our worries for the future…
But I can't use my computer to hug my godmother and my niece. How to explain the situation to children? How can you not be upset when they see you on camera and ask you with that sad style and frowning lips "why aren't you here to play?" and "when will you hug me to read me a fairy tale?".
How to make a child understand that "Staying Home" is the only way to protect ourselves from the coronavirus in order to get out of this crisis as much as possible with the least losses?
As you would give it to an elderly person who ostentatiously ignores the measures… This is the advice of someone who experiences her own loneliness and not be in quarantine, who smiles and even stays home as long as possible faithfully follow "We Stay Home".