CRISTINE FARINAS

Three weeks ago, I finally went out of the house after almost eight weeks of voluntary confinement due to the Corona Virus. That was eight weeks of not going out of the flat at all. Whilst many people expressed how much they missed the outside world, I was genuinely happy being inside the house. Probably because I am part introvert. If I didn't have to go to work, I would have preferred to stay at home for the rest of this pandemic. Whilst in lockdown, I have more opportunities to reflect on life. Yes, living in the time of Corona Virus is strange and there are a lot of things that are sacrificed. I hear some people complaining about how inconvenient it is for them not to be able to do the things that they would normally do otherwise. As for myself, the only thing that I am really disappointed about is the fact that I am unsure as to when I am able to go home and visit my parents again. I was meant to go home at the end of April (as a surprise), however the Philippines banned al

On April 16, my mother was rushed to the hospital due to a 3-day history of fever, cough and body malaise. Although it could have been just a common flu, these days it will always be more than that. She was immediately put under the PUM category (Persons Under Monitoring). A chest x-ray was performed which confirmed Pneumonia. Everything happened so quickly, we didn't even have enough time to think about logistics. My sister-in-law brought my mother to the Rural Health Unit to be assessed initially, but then she was referred to the hospital straight away. My sister-in-law accompanied my mother to the hospital and never went home until my mother was discharged 13 days later.  We immediately asked my father and my niece to self-isolate. Whilst it would have been easy for me to ask publicly (via social media) for prayer warriors to pray for my mother's fast recovery, I chose to keep this ordeal privately on this occasion. Knowing how misinformed and judgemental some people are