How We Survived Job Loss With Love And Hope

My wife lost her job at the start of March this year. She worked as an air and ticketing agent, and her boss explained simply that the business was struggling. “The air industry is at a standstill due to this Coronavirus. We’ve been operating at a loss for a while now, and we need to downsize.”

That day, my wife was one of five employees who were let go. She returned home feeling very down, which was completely understandable. Her salary was higher than mine, and our household relied heavily on it. “How would we manage on my small salary now that hers was gone?”

We had plans for her to start her own venture while searching for new opportunities. At that time, Ghana had not reported any Covid-19 cases, so life felt normal. My wife invested a significant portion of her savings into wigs, shoes, and clothing for women, hoping to get her business off the ground. However, just two weeks later, Ghana confirmed its first two Covid-19 cases, and everything began to decline. Sales plummeted as panic set in; people were only focused on hearing messages about washing hands or using sanitizer.

I kept reassuring her that stability would return soon and encouraged her to hold on to hope. A week later, schools were closed, which meant I had to stay home (I’m a teacher) and help her sell her products. We tried our best, but we couldn’t achieve much. When news of the impending lockdown spread, we decided to purchase essentials to prepare for staying indoors and avoiding trouble. We bought what we could afford.

Not much…

On normal days, we would have been fine, but the grim reality of the situation worldwide is what frightens us. We have no idea when this will end or how long it will take for the world to recover from this crisis. Everything feels bleak. All we have is hope—hope that this will soon be over. Nothing specific. As it stands, we can’t make plans or discuss tomorrow. The president announced that the lockdown would last for two weeks. What if it extends beyond that? How do we survive on the little we have left?

I see her trying to maintain a brave face and smile as if everything is okay, but when she goes to the kitchen to get food, you can see her pause, scanning what we have left before deciding what to eat. She’s always thinking about the future. I told her, “We have life. We have love. We’ll get through this. Just find peace.”

A moment later, I noticed her status update on my Facebook timeline: “The world is not ending. Let’s stay calm.”

I liked it and commented, “We have love.” She responded with a laugh to my comment. We are good together. No matter what happens, we will survive.

—Obeng,