I lost two of my uncles last Sunday to covid. Both are cousins of my mom; one was her father's sister's son,
and another was her mother's sister's son - the one I mentioned in a previous
post who was in the hospital under oxygen - are aged less than 55. Do covid see
the age? The well do immunities survive along with early detection and
prevention with mask and social distancing.
Though we are not much acquainted
with the paternal cousin of my mom, she got a lot of memories with him as she
used to spend her vacations at grandpa's village playing with her cousins. I
have stayed in their village during our vacation too, but I never remember
seeing him there; perhaps he was out of the village on a job, our first intro
was at his marriage. He was a flooring contractor in Mysore. More than 100
employees are working under him, and a lot had benefited from him. The
youngsters from his village and family circle hired by him acquired flooring
and become contractors themselves later.
I have been to Mysore twice, and
both the time we stayed at his home and looked around the places. The first
visit was after his marriage (1997), and the next was 10 years later, by then
when he had three little kids. Only 2 weeks back, his elder daughter's
engagement took place, and only my mom and brother attended the function
following the preventive action. He has just built a big house in his village,
and since the outbreak, he stays in the village with his family and makes monthly
a visit or two to Mysore.
During one such visit after her
daughter's engagement, he got the infection and spread it to his family. Many
others who returned to the village from Mysore also had the infection, and they
spread it for their share. He was on the ventilator for the last 3 days before
he breathed last.
He's a respectful person, and
during our visit to his house in Mysore, he treated us with such delight and
made sure we are comfortable. His son just admission to medicine, and another
daughter at college should be missing his father's support, and his family was
dependent on him. Even though there won't be a problem with wealth, but still,
the void left by him irreplaceable.
Almost it was the same with my
other uncle, the maternal cousin of my mom, though he isn't a big businessman
or someone possession enough to leave their family to feel secure. His death
was something that really shattered us, and we never thought he would die as he
responded so well for the treatment of more than 10 days in the hospital with
the aid of oxygen. And he passed away within a few days of discharge and while
eating his breakfast at home.
He's not only mom's maternal
cousin; he's my dad's cousin sister's son. So, he's related more than a way to
us, and how could we not say his death is a tragedy when there's a series of
death in his family. In 2019 his father passed away, and the following year he
missed his mother, and in Dec 2020, his brother-in-law died prematurely, which
has quite shaken their lives.
He's the one who motivated me to
use a computer since he owned a DTP shop, and after I dropped out of school, I
started learning computer, and it was through him I bought my first computer in
late 2000. Because of the job of long seated, he got a serious back problem and
was forced to change his work pattern. He shifted to various jobs, but he
couldn't sustain a permanent job or income. He has two sons - one is doing
engineering 2nd year and another studying in high school - and the elder boy is
a smart and humble being.
I really need to say, his wife,
who is also my cousin, is down to earth. And I have never seen someone as
patient as her. She has gone through a lot of trouble due to the contradiction
with her mother-in-law, but all the time, she was the one to step down, and she
never complained about it. The way she
brought up defines her character, and I've seen her from my childhood, and she
hadn't changed till now. There won’t be anyone who dislikes her, and what she
exercises is all pure love and care.
It was not less than 6 months
since she lost her beloved brother, who had been a great support to her
financially and emotionally, and I couldn't imagine what kind of mindset she
should be now. I could only feel disaster. I truly wish for the welfare of
these families, and losing the family heads needn't a definition, and it's
definitely a thorn trek for these families to reach the various summit. I hope
they are motivated in some way to look forward to driving. Peace
I don’t think I need to define
the situation in India as the world watches us; uncertainty continues as we are
into the 6th day of the whole lockdown in our state Tamil Nadu. Keep us in your
thoughts, please.