It’s hard to believe it has been five years since the Coronavirus hit our shores. A half-decade ago— time really does fly.
All these years and a million lives lost later, we truly are living in a post-COVID-19 world.
There are a few moments in history that have earned the “post” moniker.
The post-9/11 world, for instance. When I travel with my students, they can’t imagine a time when airports didn’t have TSA security checks.
They’re shocked to learn you could once walk straight to the gate to pick up a friend.
Then there’s the post-World War II world, the post-Cold War world, the post-Civil Rights Act world.
All these eras have shaped the world we live in today. We’ve added the post-COVID-19 world to that list.
Everything changed in the blink of an eye. Schools shut down. Sporting events were canceled. Kids were sent home.
We learned how to work from home. We learned how to order groceries online. We adapted to a lot of new things.
While most COVID-19 protocols are not missed, a few changes brought about by the pandemic were for the better—and they’ve stuck.
Does Walmart really need to be open all night?
Kids these days can’t remember a time when you could fill up your grocery cart at 3 a.m., and that’s okay.
Walmart workers deserve to go home at a reasonable hour. There’s no urgent need to buy Totino’s Pizza at 3:30 a.m. Plan ahead, shop early and get some sleep.
Post-COVID, we are charged with wiping down gym equipment when we are done. Before COVID, I never saw gyms with sani-wipe dispensers. Now, they’re a staple—and that’s okay too.
Why not be courteous and wipe down the bench when you’re done? Take your germs with you.
If nothing else, this habit signals that you’re finished with the machine and someone else is welcome to use it.
COVID-19 forced us to rethink work. It pushed technology to evolve and adapt.
Here at the News-Record, we use technology every day that was out of reach and unaffordable for a small business a decade ago. A free Google Drive and Zoom account can now exponentially increase productivity. Ten years ago, such tools were expensive, cumbersome and inaccessible.
The pandemic brought about many changes, and we’ve endured them. We’ve learned countless lessons, and I hope we don’t forget them.
Tragedies occurred, but such is life. Trials and tribulations shape us. They make us stronger, more agile, more productive and smarter. That’s what makes us human.
We should face challenges head-on. Instead of lingering on the problem, we should focus on finding the solution.
Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote, “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.”
For what is within us shapes what lies ahead of us.
Austin Lewter can be reached at [email protected]
Source: Freepik.com