No doubt, this year has been overrated over the past couple of years. I've heard of crisis in the past, some which shook me up, some just happen and I came through somehow, but what I heard on the news mid March blew my imaginations.

   There was a virus on the loose and it wasn't just a localized disease but a global one.

   This was making the headlines on every TV station, on the radio and even newspapers. Rumours started going up and down about such a small virus

   "I heard it came from China," one customer said while I was attending to a patient.

    "True, those people that eat anything eatable," another customer chipped in.

   "If this virus spreads into Africa, there will be massive deaths. Imagine a virus that presently has no cure spreading in Nigeria where health care system is degraded. It would be a disaster," another customer added.

   The patient I was attending to even joined the conversation. "I pray it doesn't spread into Nigeria. There would be no stopping it. Just look how overpopulated we are. I also heard it's a virus that is airborne."

   "That's true."

   They kept educating themselves about the virus.

   Pharm Salome stepped out of her office after we somehow managed to dismiss our educators. She already read in details about this pandemic so she gave us her own lecture.

   Not long after, people started panicking when the news broke that a case has been reported in Lagos.

   An avalanche of customers stormed into the pharmacy store to buy face masks, hand gloves, hand sanitizers and disinfectants. Honestly, I have never seen such reaction to any situation, ever. The panic buying was so scary, one would think the virus was already predominant in the country.

   Long story short, the government decleared a lockdown. Something I've never heard of or witnessed before and right before my eyes, we were forced to stay at home. "Where was this declaration when University of Benin was stressing the hell out of me?" I asked Judith.

   She just laughed.

   Pharm Salome asked me to suspend my program for the time being. A part of me was happy that I'd finally have some 'me' time and the other part was equally happy. Like, 'where have you been all my life?'

   The situation wasn't something to be happy about, I mean people were dying in numbers so why was I happy?

   "I could use this opportunity to work on my writing skills, I could also eat healthy" - who am I kidding? I wanted to add some weight because I looked like Stress returning from school.

   This was the break I needed.

   I thought of so many things I could try this period, things I didn't have time for. I knew this opportunity will never ever come again.

   People were panic buying, stocking their houses prior to the lockdown, businesses started slowing down and the economy in general backed out. All I could think of was the free time I had to waste on movies, series and animations.

   I couldn't get enough. I was sure to burn data sufficient enough to pay my school fees.