When you're pregnant with your first baby, you're keenly aware that nothing is – and probably will never again be – "normal". But when it happens during a pandemic, any notions of normality become as elusive as the microscopic coronavirus itself.
And yet, despite spending most of my pregnancy hiding indoors in Dubai as Covid-19 radically altered the way societies function all over the world, I was fortunate that it was fairly smooth sailing for me. I felt – and still feel – lucky that we are in the UAE, safer than we would have been in many other places.
I worked from home, no longer had to commute to Abu Dhabi while heavily pregnant, spent plenty of time with my husband before we became three, and tucked into far more home-cooked meals than I’d had in years.
From the third trimester through to the text-book hospital birth (which, thankfully, both my husband and doula were allowed to attend), there were very few dramas going on in my little bubble.
Even my elderly parents, who are based in the UK, were able to make it out to the UAE 10 days after their first grandchild was born in July.
Now, however, it is a different story.
It all started a couple of weeks ago, when my husband got a tickle in his throat. After taking a routine PCR test in order to travel for work to Saudi Arabia, it turned out he had Covid-19.
The thing is, my parents came back for Christmas, just before new travel restrictions were introduced, and we extended their visa – rather ironically – to keep them safe from the UK variant. After doing a test, we realised my dad has it, too.
It's unsettling to know the thing you've been living in fear of for nearly a year has finally found a way to infect your loved ones
Not only have we now exposed my 74-year-old mother and 78-year-old father to the virus, but also my 6-month-old daughter, who mere days ago came down with a scorching fever.
While my mother and I previously tested negative, another quick trip to the Festival City HealthHub fast-track screening centre revealed Mum also has it.
I’m the only one left standing (and wondering when it's going to hit me, or whether or not I’ve already had it and didn’t realise).
Thankfully, no one is bedridden, and our paediatrician assures us that babies bounce back much quicker than adults, but it’s hard not to worry and feel guilty.
How strange this virus is has become painfully apparent, too, as everyone around me has experienced extremely different symptoms.
My dad, who has an underlying heart condition, has felt nothing. Among the others we’ve had sore throats, headaches, coughs, the loss of smell and taste, and general malaise. My daughter is the only one who’s had a fever, which, thanks to a spot of baby-friendly Nurofen, has already mostly subsided. She’s also had a little cough, been fairly lethargic, whimpers often and keeps spitting out her milk.
The worst part is not always knowing what she feels. There are ways to tell when she’s tired or has a tummy ache, but can she taste or smell anything? Does she know she’s sick? She’s usually such a smiley baby, but her sad little face these past few days has been heartbreaking.
There have been sleepless nights and plenty of tears (mostly from baby and me, the one healthy resident in the house), concerns over childcare as we've put our trusty nanny on paid leave. Cancelled flights and incoming mandatory hotel quarantine in the UK has only added another layer of worry.
It's unsettling to know the thing you've been living in fear of for nearly a year has finally found a way to infect your loved ones, and there's no way of knowing what's coming or what you can do about it.
We weren't exactly living the high life, but perhaps we were guilty of feeling too safe
But we have also found silver linings to the situation.
For one, the people I love most will now have a little immunity, and my parents have been able to access medical care here far quicker than they might have done in the UK, as the NHS strains under the weight of cases. We got a video consult with a cardiologist for my dad within four hours of calling the hospital here.
I don’t know if this story has a happy ending yet, and we are clueless as to how Covid-19 managed to sneak into our house, but it’s certainly been a wake-up call. It’s not as though we felt immune to the situation; we’ve diligently donned our masks and sanitised every time we touched something on the odd supermarket trip and doctor’s appointment. We weren’t exactly living the high life, but perhaps we were guilty of feeling too safe.
That’s the thing with this virus – it’s unpredictable. And while a spot of unpredictability may have been OK in my “normal”, pre-Covid, pre-pregnancy, pre-baby life, that’s most definitely not the case as a first-time mum living through a pandemic.
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Nepotism is the name of the game
Salman Khan’s father, Salim Khan, is one of Bollywood’s most legendary screenwriters. Through his partnership with co-writer Javed Akhtar, Salim is credited with having paved the path for the Indian film industry’s blockbuster format in the 1970s. Something his son now rules the roost of. More importantly, the Salim-Javed duo also created the persona of the “angry young man” for Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan in the 1970s, reflecting the angst of the average Indian. In choosing to be the ordinary man’s “hero” as opposed to a thespian in new Bollywood, Salman Khan remains tightly linked to his father’s oeuvre. Thanks dad.
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
The Africa Institute 101
Housed on the same site as the original Africa Hall, which first hosted an Arab-African Symposium in 1976, the newly renovated building will be home to a think tank and postgraduate studies hub (it will offer master’s and PhD programmes). The centre will focus on both the historical and contemporary links between Africa and the Gulf, and will serve as a meeting place for conferences, symposia, lectures, film screenings, plays, musical performances and more. In fact, today it is hosting a symposium – 5-plus-1: Rethinking Abstraction that will look at the six decades of Frank Bowling’s career, as well as those of his contemporaries that invested social, cultural and personal meaning into abstraction.
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The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
Zayed Sustainability Prize
SUZUME
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Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-finals, first leg
Liverpool v Roma
When: April 24, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Anfield, Liverpool
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 2, Stadio Olimpico, Rome
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The five pillars of Islam
'Munich: The Edge of War'
Director: Christian Schwochow
Starring: George MacKay, Jannis Niewohner, Jeremy Irons
Rating: 3/5
A Cat, A Man, and Two Women
Junichiro Tamizaki
Translated by Paul McCarthy
Daunt Books
RESULTS
Manchester United 2
Anthony Martial 30'
Scott McTominay 90 6'
Manchester City 0
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Analysis
Maros Sefcovic is juggling multiple international trade agreement files, but his message was clear when he spoke to The National on Wednesday.
The EU-UAE bilateral trade deal will be finalised soon, he said. It is in everyone’s interests to do so. Both sides want to move quickly and are in alignment. He said the UAE is a very important partner for the EU. It’s full speed ahead - and with some lofty ambitions - on the road to a free trade agreement.
We also talked about US-EU tariffs. He answered that both sides need to talk more and more often, but he is prepared to defend Europe's position and said diplomacy should be a guiding principle through the current moment.
The biog
Occupation: Key marker and auto electrician
Hometown: Ghazala, Syria
Date of arrival in Abu Dhabi: May 15, 1978
Family: 11 siblings, a wife, three sons and one daughter
Favourite place in UAE: Abu Dhabi
Favourite hobby: I like to do a mix of things, like listening to poetry for example.
Favourite Syrian artist: Sabah Fakhri, a tenor from Aleppo
Favourite food: fresh fish
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More on Quran memorisation:
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Premier League results
Saturday
Crystal Palace 1 Brighton & Hove Albion 2
Cardiff City 2 West Ham United 0
Huddersfield Town 0 Bournemouth 2
Leicester City 3 Fulham 1
Newcastle United 3 Everton 2
Southampton 2 Tottenham Hotspur 1
Manchester City 3 Watford 1
Sunday
Liverpool 4 Burnley 2
Chelsea 1 Wolverhampton Wanderers 1
Arsenal 2 Manchester United 0
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Difference between fractional ownership and timeshare
Although similar in its appearance, the concept of a fractional title deed is unlike that of a timeshare, which usually involves multiple investors buying “time” in a property whereby the owner has the right to occupation for a specified period of time in any year, as opposed to the actual real estate, said John Peacock, Head of Indirect Tax and Conveyancing, BSA Ahmad Bin Hezeem & Associates, a law firm.
UAE v United States, T20 International Series
Both matches at ICC Academy, Dubai. Admission is free.
1st match: Friday, 2pm
2nd match: Saturday, 2pm
UAE squad: Mohammed Naveed (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Shaiman Anwar, Rameez Shahzad, Amjad Gul, CP Rizwan, Mohammed Boota, Abdul Shakoor, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Sultan Ahmed, Zahoor Khan, Amir Hayat
USA squad: Saurabh Netravalkar (captain), Jaskaran Malhotra, Elmore Hutchinson, Aaron Jones, Nosthush Kenjige, Ali Khan, Jannisar Khan, Xavier Marshall, Monank Patel, Timil Patel, Roy Silva, Jessy Singh, Steven Taylor, Hayden Walsh