What is it that makes a person throw all worries away and so desperate to walk miles and miles to reach their destination in tragic times. Is it the hope of retreating to a place that a person imagines to be his or her “home”? Is it because the person, left penniless and hopeless by the bad times, is completely convinced to find there people with whom they share the bond of trust and unconditional affection? That’s the place and those are the people they trust will protect them from all pecuniary difficulties and help them in weathering all seasonal changes.
We can exercise some control over the trajectory of our lives, but, unfortunately, it can transform unimaginably due to unforeseen hardships and events. Some hardships are of our own making, and some are unannounced and uninvited reprimandations of the nature, such as epidemics and disasters. During such life-changing events, we get surrounded by conditions, situations, and folks beyond our imagination. And then we are thrown into formidable challenges and excruciatingly painful encumbrances capable of damaging our present and our future.
When flanked by cold, evil people during difficult times, our lives can veer onto a path we never chose and never imagined. This can turn one’s world totally upside down, regrettably, into a desolate, dystopian place. I was forced to reflect upon such a sensitive and heart-rending topic because of the coronavirus pandemic that has ruthlessly forced the blue-collar and have-nots to abandon cities and go back to their villages by any means within their reach. And, how the classic novel “David Copperfield” played a pivotal role in helping me fully comprehend the emotions and insecurities that drive people to walk despite all odds and fears.
When David, the protagonist of the above-mentioned novel, decides to run away from his present life, bereft of learning and well-being, he encounters hunger, fear, threats, and a range of feelings and moments of despair beyond his imagination. Despite all odds, he remains as determined as a mountain to reach Aunt Betsy’s place. The young David was thrown into a world so unsuitable and detrimental to his future that he knew the only way to salvage his life was to reach Aunt Betsy’s place.
He is robbed of his savings and bags and, thereafter, is forced by the circumstances to sell his coat and waistcoat to survive his long journey to a place that he imagined to be his real home. He experiences hunger, fear, and other overwhelming emotions. He is troubled by trampers and tinkers on his way at night. He is forced to sleep on the roadside. He recounts his feelings of embarrassment and fear of death experienced during the lonely, scary, and exhaustive journey to a place that was still only in his imagination. Despite losing everything and braving dust and rain, he finally reaches the place that would change his life for good.
The terrifying and harrowing experience, as penned by the author Charles Dickens, can make anyone think and reflect on the untoward circumstances that can force people of all ages to take tough decisions for their own good. If you try connecting the dots, then you will understand why migrants and laborers were forced during the lockdown to take drastic measures like walking or cycling back to their homes, despite not having enough food and money to survive the long journey usually undertaken by train or bus.
It’s their hopelessness that has driven them to take such a drastic stand. The migrants have highlighted the fragility of their trust in the government and in the city’s residents, whom they helped build their cities. It’s their trust in people back home who will take care of both their material and emotional needs in such a tragic time. If we put ourselves in their shoes, we will be able to understand their pain and emotions. When David is harassed by the tramps and tinkers at night, and when he cries to barter his waistcoat for money or anything else, like a flute, etc., it’s then that we can understand that desperate times force people to take desperate measures.
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