When I last wrote, about six weeks into the pandemic, our country was in a very different place. Yes, the pandemic is still with us, and even surging, but fewer are dying as we learn more. This crisis was upstaged when the inhumane death of George Floyd sparked hundreds of protests and highlighted deeply ingrained racism
Our attention and energy have shifted from “Let’s just shelter in place and get rid of this virus as fast as possible” to “How can we learn from these losses and move forward in community?” While on my morning walk, I saw a yard sign that expressed this thought well-Do we REALLY want a RETURN TO NORMAL? Isn’t it TIME WE BUILD SOMETHING BETTER? I believe it is time to be creative and innovative, wanted to share some ways I already see this happening, and invite you to join in.
Our educational system and religious communities came to a roaring halt at the beginning of the pandemic, but we can be grateful and inspired by the way many of them have come up with new ways to keep us engaged.
Oasis, which provides classes for adults over 55, has been holding classes through Zoom, which required lots of extra support for faculty and students as they learned a whole new way of teaching and learning. When the old registration system just wasn’t working, they turned to something better, a whole new one!
Many religious communities struggled to get their services online. Now live streaming has become the norm in many churches, and most will continue to use online systems even after Covid. In a recent interview with religious leaders from as diverse areas as Jamaica, Mexico, Switzerland, and Baltimore, all admitted to the difficulties of getting up to speed with the technology. Now that they’re online, they sing the praises of the opportunity to connect with more people through their “churches without walls.“
As things have started to open up in some areas, we can be grateful, yet many of us are still looking at some time before we gather with grandchildren, other family members, friends, or group members on a regular basis. So what have we learned about how to be with them virtually? In addition to the usual “show and tell” we do through FaceTime, Zoom, or Google, some have moved to playing classic games that work in this environment — charades, Pictionary, hangman, 20 questions. One of my friends who loves to cook puts together meal boxes with recipes and all the ingredients that she delivers to the door of her grandsons with directions for the cook of the day. Others read and discuss books together or learn a new language.
We have added creative ways to meet and even to celebrate. Around graduation time we decorated our cars and had parades through the neighborhood to celebrate the graduates. A friend who has been looking forward to a big 90th birthday party told us all to look for a “creative cupcake” delivered to our door instead. This may become a new trend.
Even our choral groups, not meeting in person for some time, have found a way to sing together in our little square boxes on Zoom. We can keep our voices somewhat in shape, our reading skills up, and, of course, our friendship intact through this medium. Some of our groups may fall away during this time, as our dancing has, but this allows for new and perhaps deeper learning in a current area of concern.
I know you have many of your own examples of how we are “building something better” during this time out. And it’s important, too, to acknowledge and grieve over the lives, jobs, and ways of life that have been lost. What I hope is that we will harvest the lessons learned from all this seeming chaos and move forward in building a new and better way for us as communities.