Day #5 of Malaysia’s Movement Control Order over COVID-19 — Living slow
Recently, I have been really into the vlogs made by Japanese or Korean Youtubers about their daily life. It is the type of quiet video with minimum to no speaking where a person goes about their daily life, cleaning their house, cooking a meal, going out to run some errands, etc., with elegance and gentleness. The video I watched today was titled “A prescription for my mind” that emphasizes focusing on ourselves when we feel lonely. Make good looking dishes even if you eat alone. Clean the house. Brew coffee and serve it in your favorite coffee cup. When I watch these videos, time seems to slow down and I feel the calmness of living-at-the-moment.
Living slow is not encouraged in this world
With so many self-help books and tools about increasing productivity and getting the most out of your 24 hours in the market, we are encouraged to do things fast with the best performance so that not a single minute is wasted in our life. I used to believe in living efficiently when I was in high school. Why do we place food on a plate when we can eat it directly from the takeout container? Why do we eat slowly when we can get lunch over fast and move on to the next thing to do? I started learning about living slow after I graduated from university. There is no academic achievement to pursue anymore and I am now living away from the family, hence there is more focus on myself. As I watch more and more videos of how other people live their life and read about Ikigai, a Japanese ideology of having a purpose in life that makes one’s life worthwhile, I realized that I need to live slow and enjoy every step of my life.
It is all about those little things that we do for ourselves that seem unnecessary and could take up more time I started garnishing the soup with green onions, cutting toasts into triangles, and changing into pajamas before going to bed. These steps were considered a hassle to me, but I enjoy doing them now. Life is not a race with a finishing line. It is the scenery along the way that matters.
So, what did I do today?
It was a sunny day, a perfect day for laundry to wash the bedsheets. Thanks to the grocery trip I did yesterday, I made some green pea toasts for breakfast, Japanese curry and romaine lettuce stirfry for lunch and dinner besides freezing some potatoes and mushrooms for later use. Then, it was a usual weekend — watched Youtube videos, took a nap, played computer games. It didn’t feel like a Movement Control Order today, but I do miss roti canai for breakfast.
COVID-19 cases in Malaysia as of 22nd March 2020–1306
There were 123 new cases of COVID-19 in Malaysia as of today, bringing the total number of cases to 1306. I heard some announcements made from a moving loudspeaker in the neighbourhood but did not grasp what it was about.
This is part of the supposedly 14-day writing challenge during the first phase of the Malaysian Movement Control Order.
- Day #1 of Malaysia’s Movement Control Order over COVID-19 — We are all in this together
- Day #2 of Malaysia’s Movement Control Order over COVID-19 — One of those unproductive days
- Day #3 of Malaysia’s Movement Control Order over COVID-19 — TGIF
- Day #4 of Malaysia’s Movement Control Order over COVID-19 — It’s time for some social media distancing
- Day #5 of Malaysia’s Movement Control Order over COVID-19 — Living slow
- Day #6 of Malaysia’s Movement Control Order over COVID-19 — Breaking the monotony of work
- Day #7 of Malaysia’s Movement Control Order over COVID-19 — Running out of spoons
- Day #8 of Malaysia’s Movement Control Order over COVID-19 — Slow to speak when angry
- Day #9 of Malaysia’s Movement Control Order over COVID-19 — Why are esports considered sports?
- Day #10 of Malaysia’s Movement Control Order over COVID-19 — How to communicate better with colleagues
However, I only managed to grind through 10 days and felt too exhausted to continue churning out articles day after day. But I will keep on writing articles whenever I can.
