Rüzgar, 10 years old, Istanbul (Turkey). I Wonder #80: Self-interviews Under Lockdown
Ellen Duthie
“I do feel free. About 40 percent. [...] I can see my friends virtually. I mostly feel like I’ve seen them when I see them virtually. [...] I do most of the things I did before, even if it’s in electronic settings. I have an electronic freedom.”
NAME: Rüzgar Büyükuğurlu
AGE: 10
GRADE: 5
TIME UNDER LOCKDOWN SO FAR: 83 DAYS
WHO YOU ARE UNDER LOCKDOWN WITH:
PARENTS AND LITTLE BROTHER
PLACE AND COUNTRY OF LOCKDOWN: ISTANBUL-TURKEY
I WONDER: SELF-INTERVIEWS UNDER LOCKDOWN
How you’ve been coping up to now?
I found other ways for myself and I felt happy thinking I couldn’t have done these if I wasn’t staying home. And I thought to myself staying home is super.
What is the hardest thing about lockdown?
Not seeing my friends, my social life is very limited..
Did you think you’d be able to cope with it better or worse than you are coping? In what way?
I’d have thought I’d cope very badly.. I thought I’d get bored. But this is better than getting sick and I like being home and I’ve learnt the value of some things, which is not something that happens very often.
What’s it like to have school at home?
The school is 10 times more boring at home.
What concerns you personally?
To stay here for a whole year.
Are you free? Do you feel free?
I do feel free. 40 percent.
In what ways are you less free than before the lockdown?
Not being able to go out.
In what ways are you just as free as before?
There’s a thin line between the two. Both make you feel %100 free in other ways. Both in different ways.
To play with friends from my apartment makes up for playing with my school friends. And before things go back to the way they were, something will have already replaced them.
In what ways do you think your situation is similar to being in prison?
In no way at all, I feel free, right now.
In what ways do you think your situation is different from being in prison?
I’m with my family, I’m having fun, we’re doing the things we want as much as we can under these circumstances. There are no bars, we can go to whichever room we want and we have our own rooms, we have comfortable beds and the electronic devices we want.
Can you imagine living like this for a whole year? What would you do to make your life more enjoyable in the circumstances?
I can’t think that, I’d be devastated. I’d be too addicted to electronic devices. I’d be a phone addict. The phone would be my normal life and I’d be a little bit right about that.
How are you all sharing the housework? Does it seem fair and balanced or can you think of a better way?
No, there’s not a good distribution of work and actually, there’s not much we can do. Sometimes the best we can do is not to do anything. Mom does all the work, we don’t do a thing. Because when she does all that work we think she can do it easily, anyway and just do nothing. Actually there are chores we can take on. For example I can vacuum the house but we’re usually playing and while playing we just never think of this. Because we were not living like this before we can’t think of it. Now we’re always home, there’s more work to do. I actually used to like cleaning before but when it’s everyday it starts to get boring.
Is there anything that you are doing that makes you feel freer under lockdown?
I can see my friends virtually. I mostly feel like I’ve seen them when I see them virtually. If there was no lockdown I wouldn’t be able to do that, I wouldn’t have a Whatsapp group. I do most of the things I did before, even if it’s in electronic settings. I have an electronic freedom.
What helps you cope with the situation?
My family, my friends, things I accomplish on electronic devices.
Do you have any suggestions for people who are not coping so well?
I’d suggest they do some painting.. And to speak with their friends online. Painting opens new horizons in your imagination and makes you forget everything.
How are the adults in your life coping with the situation?
Mine are very adaptive people. Whatever changes, they just adapt to the environment. I can’t really do that.
Do you think this is a situation we might learn from? What kind of lesson might we learn from this situation?
I think people have realized the value of things they had. And they’ve improved their skills in virtual environments.
Do you think your life is going to change after this? If you think so, in what way do you think it will change?
After a certain time everything will go back to normal and no one will remember anything.
Do you think the world is going to change after this? If you think so, in what way do you think it will change?
The world will change but not just because of this. It’s changed a bit, even now. There has been less petrol consumption and the world has got at least a little cleaner but people won’t keep this going, they’ll go back to normal.
What would you like to do on the first day you can go out to the street freely?
I’d go and see the people I love. I’d go to my grandparents, I miss them, very much.
What would you ask an expert about this time?
I’d ask; will people take everything back to normal, ruin all the depollution of the environment and will they pollute it even more?
What do you ask yourself?
Will everyone become a different person after this? Will everyone develop in other ways than before and come out as totally different people? Will they take their first steps out as a whole new person?
I Wonder, Self-interviews Under Lockdown is a project by Wonder Ponder inviting 5 to 18 year olds to ask questions and think about the coronavirus crisis and its consequences through self-interviews in audio, written or ilustrated format.
If you want to send a self-interview for us to include it in the project, please read this entry and follow these instructions.
We look forward to hearing from you!
You can see/read/listen to other self-interviews here.