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Quarantining Alone - A Once in a Lifetime Opportunity

This Covid-19 virus has turned the entire world upside down. It has broken a lot of older habits and set a lot of new normals. Towards the early days of this lockdown, I had written a blog - An Extrovert in Isolation. The early lockdown days were extremely difficult for me. That was the phase of breaking old habits. An extrovert by nature, couldn't accept the sudden change of being locked alone inside my house.

I am writing this blog again after being locked at home for more than 100 days now. Most of the older habits are broken by now. A few new habits have become a part of my new normal. What seemed to have been painful 100 days back has now turned to be blissful. Here, I am sharing my story of how quarantining alone has ended up being the greatest opportunity and a huge transformation in my life. 

I have been struggling for years to fix my sleep patterns. Going to bed late and waking up late had been a habit for a really long time. My struggles to change this habit hadn't been much fruitful till recently. These days, I wake up at 5 am, without an alarm. A quick shower, followed by my morning chanting practice. A blissful twenty minutes in the balcony with a cup of warm tea, watching the rising sun. I don't know how I had never known this positive way of starting my day. Following my tea, a good thirty minutes of some basic yoga (I am not too much a dedicated person when it comes to workout, but a few sets of Surya namaskar seems to be working fine for me these days) and another forty minutes of some basic meditations....by the time this routine ends, my battery is charged to 100% already!

Then starts my day. Cleaning, cooking, breakfast, and then beginning my work. A yogic diet of just two meals a day (brunch at 10 am and dinner at 7 pm...no other heavy meals for the rest of the day) also has been helping me to stay energetic without any lethargy. Wrapping up work by 8 pm, finishing the rest of the cleaning in the kitchen, a nice shower, and snuggling up in the bed with a good book. Reading till I fall asleep. 



Weekends are even more fun with work getting replaced with some basic painting (a hobby rediscovered during the lockdown), or some journaling.

Sounds boring? Well, if someone had told me this routine 100 days back, I would have called it boring as well. But these 100 days have taught me to be at utmost peace and bliss with myself. Had I not been stuck alone these lockdown days, a lot of things would not have happened in my life - like the increased intensity of my spiritual practices or practicing a minimalistic living to a deeper extent. 

Not an artist yet...but definitely enjoying the process.

Well, I am not saying I never have those crazy fun video calls with my friends or those series of online games. Yup...I do have those too. Time is also spent on those series and movies on Netflix and prime. But all these have been consciously reduced, to make more time for myself. 

I always thought these talks about the inward journey are just myths...but well, now I can vouch for it...that they are not. Making the inward journey is indeed a reality!
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