No maids during lockdown changed views of helpers
No maids during lockdown changed views of helpers
The lockdown has undoubtedly brought about a significant change in our regular lives, and one of those alterations is, the absence of domestic help. During the Covid-19 lockdown, everyone was expected to stay at home and the housemaids were no exception. This was the primary driving force that brought all hands on deck in every household.
Though my mother was doing the major part of all the household chores, it made me feel bad to sit back and see her work relentlessly. So I offered to help her out; and that is when I realised how much of effort goes into making things look spick and span in the house. I had not yet tried my hand at cooking; therefore, I thought it would be wise to help out with other less risky tasks. Hence, my mother assigned me the work of sweeping and swabbing the entire house.
That I was an amateur was not unknown to my mother, so she asked me to begin with one room at a time. I followed her instructions, and with each passing day, I got better and better. Towards the beginning, I was enjoying learning something new; in fact, I used to make my house cleaning sessions rather fun by putting on loud music and adding in a few dance moves. I discovered sweeping was easier than swabbing or mopping.
I began with my room and gradually moved onto the drawing, the dining and my parent’s room as well. Seeing that I was doing reasonably well, my mother requested me to clean the courtyard too. Excitement and zeal were what drove me to this newly found occupation; I would put all my effort and at the end, drop on the sofa feeling satisfied and content. As the work was pretty tiring, I would demand a glass of cold lemonade from my mother immediately after I had burnt a lot of calories.
However, unlike the widespread belief that these are trivial tasks and did not deserve any respect, I realised that a lot of hard work goes into doing this utterly simple job. If you intend to have a clean house, you need to sweep not just the area of the house that is open but also underneath the furniture. Standing erect with the broom in your hand will not give you the optimum results; you will have to bend over and get into every nook and corner. Swabbing was no less than any art that needs to be mastered. As per my mom’s instruction, this part of the job required more careful attention; this is because it involved the use of water. We all know that water makes a surface slippery, and that is precisely what one had to take special care of while swabbing. Wringing the mop carefully and diligently was very crucial; that was what was going to clean the place and at the same time make sure there is no excess water to slip and fall.
Initially, these chores were interesting. However, with every passing day, I began to find it extremely tedious and thereby began losing interest in it. This was a moment of realisation for me. I started to realise how hard these people, who help around in our houses, work just to do all the tasks efficiently. I also felt sad at the thought that most of us fail to identify this effort. On the contrary, more often than not, it is thought that since the house helps are getting paid, we can ask them to go to any length of strain. Such thought inspires certain people to take their maids for granted and behave rudely with them. The saddest part of this relation of a house-help and an employer is the lack of respect in majority cases. A lot of the elders of the house fail to attach due gratitude and honour to these people who help us with our share of responsibility. Unfortunately, several children imitate their parents and consider these helpful souls to be their possessions.
I, therefore, feel there is a need to educate the children in all spheres of life and not just academics. It is possible to have a life without bookish knowledge, but without the knowledge of how to be good human beings, life is worth nothing. In this regard, the ‘lockdown’ has actually become a blessing in disguise. It is surprising to experience that the closing down of our physical mobility has in a way, triggered the opening up of our minds and has brought about our mental mobility.
© Arked
The lockdown has undoubtedly brought about a significant change in our regular lives, and one of those alterations is, the absence of domestic help. During the Covid-19 lockdown, everyone was expected to stay at home and the housemaids were no exception. This was the primary driving force that brought all hands on deck in every household.
Though my mother was doing the major part of all the household chores, it made me feel bad to sit back and see her work relentlessly. So I offered to help her out; and that is when I realised how much of effort goes into making things look spick and span in the house. I had not yet tried my hand at cooking; therefore, I thought it would be wise to help out with other less risky tasks. Hence, my mother assigned me the work of sweeping and swabbing the entire house.
That I was an amateur was not unknown to my mother, so she asked me to begin with one room at a time. I followed her instructions, and with each passing day, I got better and better. Towards the beginning, I was enjoying learning something new; in fact, I used to make my house cleaning sessions rather fun by putting on loud music and adding in a few dance moves. I discovered sweeping was easier than swabbing or mopping.
I began with my room and gradually moved onto the drawing, the dining and my parent’s room as well. Seeing that I was doing reasonably well, my mother requested me to clean the courtyard too. Excitement and zeal were what drove me to this newly found occupation; I would put all my effort and at the end, drop on the sofa feeling satisfied and content. As the work was pretty tiring, I would demand a glass of cold lemonade from my mother immediately after I had burnt a lot of calories.
However, unlike the widespread belief that these are trivial tasks and did not deserve any respect, I realised that a lot of hard work goes into doing this utterly simple job. If you intend to have a clean house, you need to sweep not just the area of the house that is open but also underneath the furniture. Standing erect with the broom in your hand will not give you the optimum results; you will have to bend over and get into every nook and corner. Swabbing was no less than any art that needs to be mastered. As per my mom’s instruction, this part of the job required more careful attention; this is because it involved the use of water. We all know that water makes a surface slippery, and that is precisely what one had to take special care of while swabbing. Wringing the mop carefully and diligently was very crucial; that was what was going to clean the place and at the same time make sure there is no excess water to slip and fall.
Initially, these chores were interesting. However, with every passing day, I began to find it extremely tedious and thereby began losing interest in it. This was a moment of realisation for me. I started to realise how hard these people, who help around in our houses, work just to do all the tasks efficiently. I also felt sad at the thought that most of us fail to identify this effort. On the contrary, more often than not, it is thought that since the house helps are getting paid, we can ask them to go to any length of strain. Such thought inspires certain people to take their maids for granted and behave rudely with them. The saddest part of this relation of a house-help and an employer is the lack of respect in majority cases. A lot of the elders of the house fail to attach due gratitude and honour to these people who help us with our share of responsibility. Unfortunately, several children imitate their parents and consider these helpful souls to be their possessions.
I, therefore, feel there is a need to educate the children in all spheres of life and not just academics. It is possible to have a life without bookish knowledge, but without the knowledge of how to be good human beings, life is worth nothing. In this regard, the ‘lockdown’ has actually become a blessing in disguise. It is surprising to experience that the closing down of our physical mobility has in a way, triggered the opening up of our minds and has brought about our mental mobility.
© Arked