THE REAL-LIFE TWILIGHT ZONE in LIFE IN THE TIMES OF CORONA: The Real-Life Twilight Zone

I grew up watching bizarre and creepy TV shows like “The Twilight Zone”. I didn’t remember how it started. Although my mother had warned me that such TV series were not good for kids, I didn’t care. I kept watching.

I guess that explains why I think differently than most Indonesians here now. Well, this doesn’t have to sound good or bad – just a state of fact.

For starters, I’ve been called a freak or a weirdo since I was in my teens. Those who have done so couldn’t understand me. (A plenty of them still refuse to, but why bother?) That’s okay, though. I’ve stopped expecting anything from anyone way too much.

Back in the 1990s (yes, you may guess how old I am now) when I was still in middle school, I started having more interest in crime and supernatural stories. In high school, I didn’t have much interest in things teenage girls my age would normally like back then. You know parties, rom-coms, boyfriends, clothes, trendy stuff, and typical teen dramas.

I’m not saying those are bad things. I do like them too. I just don’t think about them as much as I do with my other interests.

“The X-Files” and the 1998 riot in my country had changed the way I started seeing life back then. My eyes are open more widely now. It’s good to remain critical, to ask questions – even silently. Especially these days, there’s always more than meets the eye. These are the days such uncertainties are felt more heavily than ever.

I remember back then, those who had thought I was a freak had also wondered aloud: “Why do you always think about stuff other kids may not know nor care about? Why are you being so weird?”

Why? Because I’ve already known that there are stranger things in life. They don’t always have to be supernatural or spiritual. Even fellow humans are qualified to turn this life …

… Into The Real-Life Twilight Zone …

… So is this ongoing, #Covid19 pandemic …

R.