A WORD (OR TWO HUNDRED) FROM THE EDITOR

We all crave connectivity, even more so in these days of physical distancing. This has been evident in many of my recent interactions with family, friends and neighbours.

I was puttering around in the garden in our front yard when a young couple walked by, their little daughter dressed in bright pink, prancing alongside. They said hello as they passed, and before I could respond, she came to an abrupt standstill. “Hello!” she repeated with the sweetest smile ever. Followed by another hello and a wave of her hands. I smiled and waved and told her I loved her dress and they moved on. A few seconds later, I heard her parents coaxing her to move along and looked up to see they had stopped again a few steps away. And there stood the little girl, smiling and waving. “We haven’t seen people outside for days now, so she’s all excited,” her parents explained with a laugh.

Another sunny morning, a man walked by with his dog. A cross between a Newfoundland and a poodle, the dog is a beautiful, gentle giant. The owner and I have exchanged brief pleasantries in the past, but this time he stopped to admire the flowers that were coming up. I commented on how patiently the dog stood there, not even straining at the leash when a squirrel dashed around him almost teasingly. “We used to walk with other people with dogs so they could play, now we don’t do that and he misses the interaction,” said the man.

A cousin of mine turned 50 a few weeks ago and it was a milestone the family wanted to celebrate. But how, was the question, when even his sister couldn’t go see him. He’s in Delhi, she’s in Haryana. They live barely a 10-minute drive away from each other, but border closings and the lockdown prevented her from going over. My aunt in Lucknow had a solution. A Zoom party! And so it was that on the predetermined hour, members of the clan in different parts of the world including Canada and the US and from cities across India met in a Zoom room to wish the freshly-minted 50 a very happy birthday.

And just a few days ago, a bunch of my old school friends met in a virtual room. Some of us see each other pretty frequently as we travel back and forth between countries, others have not met for more years than we care to count. But time and distance melt when we are all together in one room. There was much laughter, much pulling of legs, and much talking over one another, no sentence complete before someone else jumped in with another. And a whole lot of fun was had by all.

We all make periodic visits to India and travel around, meeting family and friends in different parts of the country, but it’s piecemeal, meeting a few at a time. To gather everyone in one room, it takes a milestone birthday or a wedding.

Or this year, a lockdown and technology.

Happy Father’s Day!

Shagorika Easwar