SASKTODAY.ca — This is the second in a series of summer thought experiments prepared for your reading enjoyment by SASKTODAY.ca writers. Each Sunday through July and August, watch for another installment. We aim to provoke your interest in a variety of thought experiments, some deeper than others. This week: If you knew what you knew now at the height of the pandemic, what would you have done differently?
The pandemic, the hottest topic for two solid years or more. The word that drastically divided families, friends, communities, our province, and our country
If you knew what you knew now about COVID-19, would you have done anything differently from March 2020 to about the end of 2022?
Would you have bought less toilet paper? Would you have decided not to overstock your homes with food store supplies? Would you have committed more to seniors and shut-ins, when able, to help them persevere through a very isolated time?
Many families like our own said they would have not done anything different. They did what was mandated and as well as what they consciously believed was selflessly beneficial for aging parents, people with compromised health issues and family members. Sure, it meant Easter and Christmas on Facetime on an iPad but many often said the pandemic was both a blessing and a curse. The value of being dedicated to being safe and following guidelines forevermore has become apparent as it protected everyone in the manner it was intended.
Many friends, neighbours and family have said that they made lemonades of the lemons that came their way. They loved and learned to cook together, trying all kinds of new recipes learned from Facebook groups. The opportunity to spend more time together as a family and in general, experience a slower lifestyle was also appreciated.
Others say they would have paid less attention to hundreds of conspiracy theories and fake news from so-called experts circulating on social media and other media sources. Brand vaccines would not have been such a concern.
So many people affirm that they did not show true and proper gratitude to health care workers, teachers, essential service providers like food stores.
Early assumptions didn’t hold up, such as it would be short lived or key findings wouldn’t come until much later such as how long to quarantine for. Regardless saying the pandemic changed the world would be an understatement.
Not forgoing any kind of health care appointments or follow-up was vital, making ourselves a priority to avoid health care visits was crucial. Knowing what we do now probably would change the way we did these things.
Working from home, whether it worked for you, or you despised it became a great option from hereon in for those that needed it. The opportunities learned through technology on using zoom or google meets has been beneficial for both work and family life. Heck, one family we are well-acquainted with even did a family perogy bee via zoom and heralded the fun it was.
Spending more time learning from the pandemic instead of running from it. Working collectively to strengths not only our own personal health but supporting those that are still in the throes of the aftermath being experienced in health care.
Not dropping the syncing with nature, appreciated by many during isolation phases, even in winter.
The pandemic encouraged us to rethink how we worked and what we valued, those lessons will never be undone, and they will be put to good use in what we relied on and how adaptable we really were. This writer remains hopeful that thoughts changed from thoughtful and intentional rather than choosing sides, being confrontational and fear mongering. People learned to fight back against misinformation.
The importance of technology became very evident and now in post pandemic world, the importance of teaching those tools to our kids for online learning, our seniors to stay connected and even ourselves for all the technology methods that benefitted us. Also, please teach your parents how to use the camera function on their video calls so you don’t spend anymore time talking to their toes or their hairline.
Protecting ourselves from future pandemics as this isn’t the last threat to humanity. Hand washing, sanitization, masking benefits and other protective measures should never be forgotten or taken for granted.
Valuing leaders who pay attention to science, medicine and education and the importance of enhancing and fortifying all of those important aspects to protect their citizens.
Almost everyone this writer talked to told us that the pandemic represented a profound shift in their life, gaining a new sense of appreciation for life, family, freedoms. So many tips on what worked for others such as don’t make big decisions in the midst of a pandemic, and your mom knows you love her dearly but it’s your dad that also needs to know that. One step at a time, one day at a time was one of the keys to perseverance.
It was a grand opportunity to re-evaluate your financial situation as if you thought your family was established then had to live through extended job loss, you now know how to weather that storm. If you were in a mediocre financial position but found yourself not having any opportunity to spend discretionary income you now had an opportunity to choose and decide what to do with the excess money you had as well as learning to live with less once the world returning to normal.
One lesson that resonated with us was a reference a wise family member always used to say, “Nothing changes if nothing changes.” Carpe diem.
