What's the opposite of Lockdown? Lockup?

So, it’s back to school after almost 2 months. Well, there’s been HBL (Home-Based Learning) but that is always a tough call given all the distractions within the four walls. Education, as it turns out, requires focus, social interactions, and even in our digital age, an actual physical location to go to.

Just like what the office used to be for work, a school is still a place in which students need to be to congregate, collaborate, discuss, share knowledge. I think there will be a time in the future where children get 100% used to remote learning, but at this point, we are not quite there yet. Maybe it might never be, given young minds are immature, require hands-on guidance, and a community of friends. And when I say, “young minds”, I mean anyone under 20 years old.

The masked food-purchaser strikes again

And so, in the midst of this unresolved pandemic, with over 6 million confirmed infections worldwide, they make there way back to school tomorrow in a cautious “experiment” in opening up. Trying to tiptoe their way around an evil giant, lurking in our midst, quiet and invisible, hiding on surfaces and in the air – but hopefully not in schools or public transport.

Tomorrow also marks the end of our 2-month long stay(at-home)cation where we only had each other for company and every meal was either something prepared at home or brought back from the outside world. Our nearby coffeeshop and hawker-center became our refuge when we wanted something different, which also have us the excuse to get some fresh air and see what has become of the rest of the planet. Surprisingly, it has gotten significantly more crowded recently, infested with other mask-wearing humans, all trying to reclaim their once active lifestyles.

Let's keep our fingers crossed that June is a good month and we make the transition safely.