I used to hate the busy street. I seldom spend days in the park, I will admit I can't bear people's noise and the loud honks of cars, it gives me headache. The slow moving queue in the supermarket's counter has always been my pet peeve. But this week felt different.
The world has faced a pause in the industry and human activities. People were adviced to stay home. Health protocols are implemented, you just can't go out without a face mask. You can't enter an establishment without getting your temperature checked. And a mist of rubbing alcohol or sanitizer is must.
As an introvert, I didn't really cared much if I have to stay in the house and not go out for several months, it's easy for me, I have been fond of solitude anyway. And did literally spent the quarantine inside the house, I didnt even try to get some glimpse of my neighborhood after sometime. I didn't have to socialize for several months and that's pretty fine to me. Although, getting stuck in the house seems pretty fine to me, I am a young adult that has some things to accomplish and has to be settled. I need an update for the enrolment in this school year and so, I had to go to our campus and inquire.
It's an hour travel from our house. I usually take jeepney rides. The inside of jeepneys were customized to have compartment-like personal seats. I'm pretty sure anyone who's sitting beside you will not be able to accidentally read a conversation you're having on the phone because of the thick plastic barrier. And guarantees a seat for everybody because the sitting capacity is devided to 50% of the original sitting capacity of the jeepney.
I reached the campus' gate and I then saw a mat on the entrance, I guess it as wet with a sanitizing solution to rid the soles of your shoes with the unwanted visitor- the virus. I was thermal scanned and was instructed to fill out some forms, mainly for contact tracing purposes, I guess, just in case.
It's 8:30 am and I was done inquiring, I didn't have to fall in line because I was so early and inquiring students are limited, not everyone go out very often. It felt weird that I missed the slow moving lines in the registrar. It just felt different that the place that used to be crowded by this time was so silent.
On my way home, I came by a Rambutan tree inside the campus that is starting to bear premature Rambutan fruit, which me and friends have always dreamt to pick during its ripe season. I just miss how we used to walk by this path and discuss how we gonna pick a rambutan fruit without the guards seeing us, which we never really do anyway. This time, the trees are so green but the place remained silent. No traces of frequent visitors walking by.
A day outside the house after a long quarantine period was different. The air smelled fresh, the trees have restored grean leaves in their branches, no busy street, no noisy people in the park, nothing's giving me a headache. It's somehow peaceful but lonely.
It was lonely, that you won't hear peoples laughter along the busy paths, minimal noises of engines in the streets, no busy crowds, some establishments are still close. It was so silent.
It's funny to admit that I used to hate the city when it's so busy but I miss it now. I do miss it now. I do miss the noises getting into my nerves. Now, you can look at people's eyes and you can tell they want the normal days again too. The normal days just like before this pandemic happened. Just like the days when the day is in hectic sched and everyone has errands to do. You can see sadness in people's eyes when half of their face is masked.
I know I used to complain about my usual pet peeves in everyday life but I'd still choose thise days again. Those normal days. I'd rather get my pet peeves everyday as long as we can go back to the normal we used to know than the new normal that turned the world silent and quite lonely.
New normal is new to me.
Don't be sad dear ❤