I see the life of every human being as the sum of moments, events, coincidences, and phenomena that color and shape our existence. I have the impression that when looking back to life experiences in retrospect, people tend to more easily and thoroughly remember the gloomy moments experienced during life. Perhaps the powerful emotional shock these experiences leave, makes them more deeply ingrained in the memory.

In my 25 years, an unusual segment that will long stay in my memory is the COVID-19 pandemic and the isolation it brought around the world.

During the first month of the lockdown, I had the impression that it was all a blow to the human ego, which seeks complete control of the planet. Empty streets, curfew, the closing of many factories, wildlife taking over through their characteristic sounds, nature that became even more beautiful in my eyes, lack of crime news — all these were just some of the evidence that humanity needs to reflect in order to change our approach toward each other and nature.

Later, for many in Kosovo, the threat from the virus became a secondary issue as we witnessed our local politicians’ absurd actions to the detriment of the population. I formed the opinion that the politicians did not care about the number of COVID-19 cases and the risk threatening the people; on the contrary, they focused all their zeal on political battlefields, with accusations and attacks against political opponents being harsher than ever before.

We already had a degraded and unethical political debate, mainly focused on personal attacks. The politicians’ behavior left a bitter feeling at a time when strong unity was expected to fight against a common enemy that would cause huge human loss and a decline of the financial situation in a country where unemployment has been for a long time now at a high level.

Meanwhile, the number of infected people kept increasing. The virus circulated in unexpected ways so that even health specialists were not entirely sure how it worked.

Fictional and real screenplays

It seemed to me as if time had stalled in one place, but I did not want to sink into despair and apathy, so I found rescue in books, classic and comic movies, music, online theater performances, cooking as something new for me (this hobby still leaves much to be desired), delving into albums of old family photographs and outdoor walks to clear my mind from the occasional bleakness of the lockdown.

Another passion I cultivated during this time was writing. I continuously write short stories, plays, screenplays for movies, a personal diary… I started to cultivate this passion after enrolling in the Journalism Faculty some years ago.

A storm of thought in lockdown times

When time seems to have stalled in one place, contemplate the world from a corner.

Alban Goranci

A storm of thought in lockdown times

When time seems to have stalled in one place, contemplate the world from a corner.

Alban Goranci