Met my childhood friends after six months, both doctors, both on frontline in big hospitals. He showed me photos of how he is in the OT, layers upon layers of PPE, surgical masks and N 95. Sweat pools in their shoes, they splash as they walk.

They spoke of moneyed or connected patients throwing their weight around, not bothered about the doctors who have to operate on them even when they are COVID positive.

They warned of the coming winter, saying that the second wave is always the worst, and that the number of fatalities are only going to rise. Feb-March is what they are looking at

The only way to stay safe is wear your mask, wear it properly, so that you do not touch your eyes, mouth and nose. Keep at a distance. And wash your hands. Three things, all in our hands, all doable.

Oh, forgot the most crucial thing. Sadly, there will be no herd immunity, because you can get re-infected after three months. So there it is : learn to live with this virus, as we have with so many others, maintaining all safety protocols.

And one last thing. This virus, they told me, damages lungs. You may think you have recovered but it can leave your lungs permanently scarred, up to 50 per cent. A three ply surgical mask is effective : mask up.