Tali Longkumer
Shopping has never been an ideal hobby for me. I usually avoid it unless it is absolutely necessary. This unavoidability however happened recently when the exciting news of great joy filled the air in our colony about the arrival of fish in the market. The arrival also carried an element of alarm that the stock of fish is limited and that one should seize the opportunity of buying the commodity at the earliest. The residences of our colony that were made to resort to the vegetarian menus for quite sometime under the spell of lockdown were simply fluttered over the news of this arrival to the market. I was eke out from my home to rush to the market for the purchase of the said commodity. By the time I arrived at the place of occurrences, I could see an excited crowd forming a long queue in front of the fish stall. The buyers though ambitious and motivated were however appeared disciplined. There were also few volunteers conspicuously brandishing in front of the crowd, attempting to bring order of discipline to the excited buyers. The volunteers were constantly shouting ‘LINE-DI-KHARA-KORIBI ARO AK FEET DISTANCE RAKHIBI’ (stand in line and keep a feet distance). Customers were more focus on the fish but less aware of one feet distances. On the other side of the scene I could also hear the fish seller desperately appealing to the crowd ‘ROKIBI, MAS BESHI ASI, SOB KARONI ARAMSE BABO’ (wait, there is sufficient fish for all of you). The appeal of fish owner to some extend subdued the excited crowd. I could also notice some customers, by stealthily avoiding the que, attempted to proceed directly towards the stall for the purchase but this unprovoked incursion was short-lived as someone from behind with a thundering voice roared-‘QUE DE OTHIBI, NAHOILI MAR KHABO’ (stand in que lest you will be trashed). Perhaps better sense prevailed as the intruder simply disappeared from the scene. By now the process of differentiating between the MAR KHABO and MAS KHABO groups having completed the authenticated customers that stood at que patiently for a long time were finally rewarded in buying the valued commodity. After the purchase they left for their homes triumphantly carrying wining smiles on their faces.
This pandemic may serve as an eye opener to some harsh realities with which we may have to learn to live in the coming days. This COVID-19 Pandemic has no boundaries. It has no ‘I’ nor ‘YOU’ nor ‘WE’ or ‘THEY’ consideration. It is always us, as the virus will attack anyone at anytime, anywhere. There is no schedule tribe concession nor does it have any special consideration on grounds of color, race or a country. Perhaps the only step for prevention against this pandemic is taking preventive steps since so far there is no vaccine against this deadly virus. The situation also calls for an alert mind, a disciplined lifestyle with proper hygiene, seeking timely medical advises and pursuance’s of protocols for the prevention and treatment of the pandemic.
