On the brink of March

 Can you believe it is nearly March 2021?

I honestly am flabbergasted thinking that an entire year has passed since the Covid pandemic began, and yet it has felt like such a long time since March 2020.  Do you feel the same?

As I have been reflecting back, I was trying to think of anything profound to say, but mostly I still feel like I am processing the effects of this past year.  Time moved so slowly at first, and yet once the routine of "quarantine life" was established, it all feels like a big blur.  I think that has been one of the protective factors of this time.  Having life be so mundane, has actually been a blessing to get us through.  At least for me, it feels that way.  My days have consisted of homeschool, housework, work, and exercise, and repeat...  There has been very little outside of the scope of that range, and that has kept me mentally feeling safe and, somehow, here I am, a year later, and still surviving.  

I was reflecting on all the different stages we have gone through this past year, and I found myself musing on the language that we have adopted to make sense of such a time of crisis.  At first, it was "these are unprecedented times" as we all adjusted to the shock of how quickly life changes.  Then everyone talked about establishing a "new normal," while we attempted to make sense of our new reality and create new routines.  There was the whole dilemma of "social distancing," which turned to "physical distancing," because we are a social species, and quickly recognized we NEED people in some form or function in our lives.  We all took to heart the "stay home," "work from home," and "shelter in place" terminology as we adjusted and turned homes into the main artery of our lives.  For many people, once the routines were in place, a sense of "quarantine life" began to settle in, and we heard terms like "feeling isolated," "pandemic fatigue," and the "Covid blues."  As summer came and went, there was more hope, and more life outside the walls of our homes, and it felt like everyone took a breath.  Then we came to the second/third waves.... and again, the language shifted.  Phrases like, "we are all in this together" became uttered all around, in hopes of inciting the masses to care for the common good of one another.  We all put in effort to "flatten the curve" and "wear masks" in order to "do our part."    

 It is so crazy how we have collectively gone through this experience together in a global way.  

If you're anything like me, I bet you are sick of hearing these terms I just wrote of.  I'm hearing it all over right now.  Everyone is feeling "done with Covid."  It's reached that point, where we can are used to it.  We have adapted.  We have spent the last entire year adapting.  But we don't want life to stay this way.  We know that it won't... but the "finish line" looks much different than what we imagined and we aren't going back to the way life was before.  

I just find it fascinating, how this universal experience has shaped all of us, albeit in different ways, but how we have ALL gone through the same thing together.  It is not often that people endure a common crisis all together at the same time.  I know it has happened in history.  It is just rare.  

So we come to March... again... and we are all different people than we were a year ago.  This pandemic has forced us to change.  I'm curious to hear how you have changed.  What have you learned?  How have you grown?  I'll pose the question out to the social media world...please take time to let me know your thoughts.