On 12 April, 2020, Lucya Chris Pardede had to return to Medan, North Sumatra from Jakarta. That day, the writer who works at a public relations company in Jakarta, had received word that her father, Santun H. Pardede, had died.

Lucya’s head was full of questions. “Why did this have to happen during the coronavirus pandemic? Why did he have to die now?”

But no one knows when death will come. When it does, everyone will have to face it, even in the most difficult of situations like a global pandemic. 

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Tonggo Simangunsong

Tonggo Simangunsong is an Indonesian journalist based in Medan, North Sumatra. His work has appeared in New Naratif, the South China Morning Post, VICE, ChinaDialogue, JakartaPost and more, covering environmental issues, culture and identity.