Our eyes met briefly just outside the grocery store where we had queued up maintaining the required social distancing . There was a hint of a smile through the mask, and an acknowledging nod. Of course no handshake or words were exchanged and really not needed too. I didn’t know him and neither presumably did he. There was no way to find and judge what sort of a person he was, like his caste , occupation or even his personality . But somehow inexplicably there was this deep connectedness and a shared feeling of togetherness . If we had to put our silent conversation in words it would be like this , ‘ Hi I know whats going on in your mind during this tough phase . There is fear and anxiety and for once we share exactly the same feelings . When will this deadly Pandemic get over? Hope we remain safe and healthy and so do our loved ones . Our desires are the same also, we both just want this to be over and get back to a normal peaceful life. And yet in the meantime lets be grateful that we are alive and healthy and enough to get along . This is indeed a blessing and I am happy to have met you briefly along this journey ’

As these thoughts crossed my mind I felt a wave of amazement and incredulity . For God’s sake aren’t we wearing masks , then how come our thoughts are so apparent and clear. We often think that normally people interact putting a kind of mask to disguise their true feelings. While here I found that though our faces were obscured by masks , yet we seemed to communicate in a much deeper warmer manner . Although there was no physical contact I felt an embrace of his entire being . My mind was flooded with many questions and doubts .

Does a mask hide or reveal ?

If its purpose is to hide then how come things are so transparent and clear now that we are wearing a mask all the time?

And what about words, do they clarify or serve to confuse ?

Why was it that this persons silence spoke to me much more eloquently than any words could ever elucidate ?

What could explain this brief conversation we just had without exchanging even a single word or using facial expressions, but which transmitted something from deep within.

Perhaps this is the language of PRESENCE which goes deeper than our personality and our identity. This Corona crisis has stripped us off our labels temporarily at least , and what is left is our beingness, our shared humanity. Rather than I am a doctor or lawyer , rich or poor what is left is simply I AM . This presence, this beingness does not need many words or expressions, it is a felt sense of communication . May this presence guide us like a beacon during these troubled times . A portal has opened up during this catastrophe and showed us a new way to communicate. Yes it has caused immense destruction but has also offered a valuable glimpse of something deep within us which is beyond all labels and judgements . Months later things will come back to normal hopefully and we will resume our routine ways. The suffocating masks will be taken off and handshakes, hugs and words will be used freely. But let us leave this portal open even after the pandemic is over . Let us remember to interact with each other through presence , and recognize each other as fellow ‘beings’ rather than judging one another through the narrow lens of our personality labels. If we can learn this new way of communication then the Pandemic has served humanity in a wonderful way despite all its devastation and misery.😊