When Covid strikes, my daughter is in Kent on a university fellowship. In Britain, there is complacency. “Nothing will happen, stay here,” my daughter is told by the school. We’re on the phone while she’s buying groceries, stocking up, telling me nervously how the hostel is emptying of students. I’m in India, where the Prime Minister declares an imminent lockdown. Soon, no international flights to India will be allowed. Heart in mouth, unable to breathe, I tell her to pack what’s needed, inform the university, and leave. That very evening, she flies home. Two days later, India is under lockdown.
Abha Iyengar is a poet, author, editor, and creative writing mentor. She is the founder of Creative Wings Studio. She has published eight books.