LIFE EXPERIENCE DURING PANDEMIC

‎In early 2020 the COVID-19 pandemic was declared a global health emergency in 2020 not 2019,the world changed overnight. Many lost their lives to the illness, and lockdowns kept us trapped inside our homes. With some stores closed, there were days when food and clean water were hard to come by. Families kept their distance from loved ones who had even mild coughs or coldswe weren’t allowed to go out, and getting close to each other felt like a risk.When schools shut down, I faced my biggest struggle yet. Online classes were impossible for meI had no gadgets to join sessions. So I relied on printed modules to keep studying, even as our community was hit by additional disasters.Barangay officials and police enforced strict curfews. I still remember playing tumbang preso with friends, then running home in a panic to avoid being caughtthere were times I left my slippers behind in my rush! The constant fear of being stopped by authorities hung over us; police could check on anyone out and about at any minute.I also missed our annual Christmas family bonding those warm gatherings were put on hold for years. The uncertainty was overwhelming: we worried nonstop about our health, how to pay for daily needs, and when life would ever feel normal again.To cope, I started a small vegetable garden in our backyard. I planted kangkong and talbos ng kamote simple crops that grew well even with limited resources. When food was scarce, we’d harvest from the garden. Not only did this save money, but tending to the plants gave me a daily routine to look forward to it kept me grounded when everything else felt chaotic.My family and I also made a new habit: every night, we’d sit together and talk about what we were grateful for. Even on the hardest days, there was something small to hold onto a good harvest, a neighbor’s help, or just being healthy together.Our neighborhood didn’t let hardship divide us. We formed a group to check on elderly residents who lived alone, share food supplies with families in need, and organize online mental health workshops to help everyone cope with stress and fear.We stood by each other through every wave of the illness, supporting one another until the pandemic finally ended.
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