A comic strip by a Filipina artist offering suggestions on how to fill their days during the monthlong Luzon-wide quarantine has struck a major chord with Filipino netizens — many of whom, no doubt, have a lot more time on their hands these days for stuff like browsing web comics on Facebook.
Illustrator Reg Silva, 36, created the now-viral comic, which she uploaded to her page “Real Life Reg” last Friday.
Titled “How To Make the Most Out of Community Quarantine,” the comic strip suggests activities like starting a passion project, reading books, exercising, and even working on a skincare routine to chase away lockdown-related boredom.
“Thought we could all use some good vibes right now. Some tips I thought of while I was in the shower. Hope it lightens your mood and your social media feed,” Silva wrote in the comic strip, which has since been shared almost 29,000 times.
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In an interview with Coconuts Manila, Silva said she started “Real Life Reg” just a few weeks ago. As a homebody, she was used to staying at home and figured the quarantine was going to be manageable, but recognized that some people may have a hard time staying indoors for an entire month.
“As a freelance work-from-home artist and introvert, I am so used to and love staying at home,” she said. “I thought of the people who may be feeling antsy at the thought of being stuck at home and needed to cope with the situation.”
“I thought who better to give stay-at-home advice than me when it’s something I’ve been doing for 11 years now. I was giggling to myself while drawing the pictures and thought maybe others could use a laugh in this otherwise bleak situation.”
The comic strip started going viral almost immediately after Silva posted it.
“The like and share count started going up every minute,” she said. “I’m pleased it did because I spent 3 hours on the drawings lol. I’m happy to spread positive vibes as I saw some FB friends post about how anxious and scared they were of the virus, so I’m grateful to share some of my jokes, peace, and calm in this situation.”
Silva said that she believed going into self- quarantine as COVID-19 cases steadily increase in the country was necessary.
“It’s [about] being a decent human being and law-abiding citizen and doing what we can to not just be infected, but more so by not unwittingly spreading the virus to others. Self-quarantine is a small, noble act of sacrificing your needs and wants at this moment for a greater good, and it’s a great thing that we can do this individually but collectively, the effect compounds for a better result for everyone,” she said.
How are you keeping busy during the quarantine? Tell us by leaving a comment below or tweeting to @CoconutsManila.
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