Message for the future
In these times where we are rarely surprised, when we have easy access to things at the other side of the world, it seems surreal that what we once considered 'normal life' is no more. I still find it hard to believe how much life has changed in the past few months. Just six months ago, we were coming back from the Christmas break to a new term. The year ahead seemed to be full of opportunities and challenges, just as we expected. Little did we know that by the end of that same term, just 7 weeks after, we would be facing an unprecedented situation. Borders were being shut throughout the world, countries were going into lockdown, and jobs and schools migrated online over the course of a few days.
With the lockdown, we all had to adapt to this new lifestyle where most of us were confined home. We slowly transitioned from stockpiling essential items, to cleaning thoroughly every single thing that was in contact with 'the outside world', and finally to a new routine while we waited for our 'new normality'. Videocalls with friends and family became more and more popular, we incorporated terms such as 'social distancing' and 'R rate' to our day-to-day vocabulary, and we started to pay close attention to things such as how many times we washed our hands and not touching our face. We also discovered many new hobbies -and some hidden talents, realised that board games (some of which we hadn't played for years) provided the best source of entertainment, and that working out at home was actually possible.
Perhaps the most important thing, at least in my mind, is that we discovered how much we can benefit from each other. I've seen impressive efforts on all front - from health care workers doing exhausting shifts; to researchers working tirelessly on detection tests, ventilators, and even a vaccine; to volunteers contributing their bit by going shopping for their neighbours and offering food to the homeless; and to teachers making an impressive effort to keep teaching their students and providing the much-needed support.
I am really lucky that no one in my family has become ill, especially taking into consideration that my four grandparents are in their 80s. In a way, the lockdowns that have been put in place in many countries have brought us even closer. Despite being in different countries (Mexico, US and the UK), we've made family Sunday lunch (or, considering the time difference, dinner in my case) possible.
I've realised, in these last few months, that celebrating the small victories is really important. Learning how to set up Zoom calls was a challenge for my grandparents, but now they are able to join in every week without any help; my mother and my aunt are now teaching their students from home; my dad, uncles and cousin are working from home, still delivering their best; and my sister and younger cousins have managed to keep up with their academic work and still find time every day to make sure we all take a (much needed) break to play something together.
All in all, this year has been unexpected – but perhaps the most unexpected thing of all is what we have learned from this ‘new normality’.About the picture(s)
(1) Family Sunday Lunch, the COVID-19 version
(2) After a long day at the hospital...
(3) Growing, literally, love for plants :)When
2020Where
Oxford, UKCreator
Carla V. Fuenteslópez
