After 4 months away being stuck in Dubai, our party of 5 landed back in India (Chandigarh last night) in the middle of #COVID19 - (my wife, two one-month old twins a one year old and I) I’m not soppy, but just so, so humbled by kindness of absolute strangers in time of crisis 1/n

A lady consulate officerbspoke at @cgidubai just said “ma’am we’re going to get you and the kids home.” She went out of her way to ensure we could connect to other passengers on our flight & attach one of the babies on their PNR (we couldn’t have flown home without this).

An official at the check-in counter, spent 20 mins (he didn’t have) making us redo our baggage so we didn’t have to pay astronomical excess baggage fee. Down to which bag at duty free I should buy. A complete rock star.

A lady from @marhaba almost became our co-parent during the whole process right down to boarding. A ground personnel, insisted on carrying my 1 YO up the flight steps cuz I had my hands full (he was worried about the infant in the chest carrier).

A guy agreed to attach a baby on his PNR within a minute. His words were “I’m just excited to go home.” He was an MBA student in Dubai, stranded for 3 months, insisted on carrying some of our carry on baggage through security to help.

On the flight, the guy sitting next to us, volunteered to hold one of the twins and he did this for the whole flight, incl swapping them when one was done with his milk. The guy next to him, talked him through how to hold the baby, incl adjusting d window shade to avoid a glare

Once down at Chandi, the health officials almost scolded me for not deboarding earlier, sped us through customs and immigrations. Another procured a chair for my wife to sit while we waited for our baggage. He specified it was ‘sanitised’.

In the whole mess of immigration, state and then district counters, one of our bags got left behind. The airport wouldn’t keep it, a ground personnel did. He called, arranged for it to be transported to patiala today by a colleague, all this without charging a penny.

When we got to Patiala, there was no way the kids or my wife could have stayed in a hotel quarantine. Officers in the district administration have spoken to me at 11 pm at night to make sure everything was sorted and done right. Thanks to one guy @tikender

This chain started from, a friend of a husband of a friend. Who went out of his way and was as invested in us flying back as we were. He started speaking to us 15 days before the kids were born till Saturday when our tkts were confirmed. @the_epicurious @devbhatia

While we flew, there were two people who in the last two months have been more adopted family than friends. Shon & @Shikhajohnson who’ve bought diapers, babysat, fed us cakes gone to emergency rooms with us and while we flew, had our house packed by movers.

I’m going to have a drink today and think about all these people and wonder what good I did to deserve them. I’m also going to feel just a bit ashamed, for wondering whether the person holding the baby had #COVID19 I’m sure they could have thought the same, but helped anyway.

Lastly, no matter how much we crib. When push comes to shove, only @airindiain will fly you back.