Day 35: Be Careful What You Wish For

Day 35: April 30, 2020
Global cases: 3,304,220; Deaths: 233,830
Egypt cases: 5,537; Deaths: 392

Salma S. ElGhetany
Executive Assistant to the Director
Adham Center for Television and Digital Journalism

Like many others, I am living the full combo of being a working mother of two young school girls who are home-bound in quarantine during the holy month of Ramadan.

My day starts with my IT hat when I help my kids through their e-classes.

By around 11 am, I put on my work hat and get through emails and work phones.

It’s past 2pm now so I put on my chef’s hat and start preparing the Iftar meal, while I get some house chores out of the way.

I try to read some Quran and get some rest in the two hours before Iftar.

After breaking fast, I watch some television with the family and by 9pm, I try to get some more work done before putting my younger girl to bed by 10:30. I then help my older girl fix her suhor so she can get in bed by 12:30am or so. I get the television to myself for one more hour during which I have my suhor then head to bed … the next day, press repeat!

For The Caravan‘s previous diary entries in Arabic and English go to our COVID-19 Special Coverage page.

Be careful what you wish for! I learned this motto the hard way; actually, I believe we all did. We were all longing for some quiet time at home, some free time to ourselves, hassle-free days, and more quality time spent with our kids.

Well, we all got what we asked for … and much more. We got all of the above PLUS feelings of anxiety, restriction, fear of the unknown…and you know the rest.

These past few weeks have been a rollercoaster ride, one out of which you cannot escape. I have been trying to juggle it all like a pro, only to realize: there is no pro at this. E-learning with the kids, remote work and zoom meetings, never-ending home chores, newly found cooking skills, all while maintaining spotless and infection-free zones in the house.

I had my down days, many of those actually, when I felt like not getting out of bed only to repeat it all … I also had my super productive days when I felt the sky’s the limit for what I can do with that much time lying around…again, a rollercoaster of emotions.

Having said all that, no one can complain, I know I am not. I am thankful my family is safe and sound and I pray they stay that way. I also pray for those out there who do not have the luxury of choice, those who must get out of the house to get a salary, and those who are putting their lives at stake for the sake of everyone else. I keep thinking about all these people, and feel like no matter how high my rollercoaster feels, I still got the ‘longer’ end of the stick.