Hopes for a world post-COVID
Words of optimism.
The world post-COVID will certainly be different — but not necessarily bad different.
In a world post-COVID I hope to see:
A Global Community That Prioritizes Mental Health.
Humans are social creatures, and so, when we are no longer able to interact with others in social spaces, our mental health begins to suffer. For many of us, our sense of belonging, and sometimes even confidence, lies in the communities and groups we are a part of.
As COVID-19 circumstances unfold, many of us are realizing with great sadness that social distancing practices will likely need to be in effect longer than any of us had anticipated or hoped.
In recent years, there has been an increased focus on the importance of mental health. Now, more than ever, community groups, centres for education, government organizations etc, are all discussing mental-health-related issues, and providing people with resources to look after their mental well-being.
As mental health comes to the forefront of mainstream media, the negative stigma attached to mental health or mental health-related issues has begun to dissolve.
In the past few weeks I have noticed:
- More open and honest conversations about mental health.
- More people reaching out for help, and/or checking in on the mental health of themselves and others.
- People having the opportunity to utilize mental health tools and techniques they have learned through therapy and sharing these tools and techniques with others.
- People realizing that they could benefit from therapy and that there is no shame in seeking out professional help. And in turn, people are having a greater understanding and appreciation for those in their life who have underlying mental health issues, or who regularly see a counsellor or therapist.
- More men expressing vulnerability and emotion in healthy ways. Men challenging the societally-imposed norm that if they express their emotions they are somehow “less of a man.” (Vulnerability is not weakness.)
Learning to be gentle with ourselves. Practicing self-compassion in this period of adjustment (aka, it’s okay to not be at your absolute most productive.)
In a world post-COVID I hope to see:
Greater Appreciation and Respect for Everyone.
Having worked in multiple customer service positions, I often felt as though my hard work went unnoticed. I had internalized the idea that what I did for work made me less important than others — that I was somehow a less valuable member of society because I worked in retail.
These feelings extended beyond my day job and into my academic and personal life, where I felt shame around my decision to pursue a degree in the arts (and to create art).
As people adjust to their new lives in self-isolation, I am beginning to see a shift in the attitudes others exhibit towards essential workers and towards creative-minded individuals.
Those with jobs that might have once been deemed by some as ‘unimportant,’ are now getting the recognition they deserve. Emerging is the collective realization that our previous-held hierarchy of job importance just got flipped on its head. To grocery store clerks, farmers, waste-disposal/sanitation personnel, bus drivers, warehouse workers, nurses, stay at home parents, etc etc. We see you. We appreciate you. Your role is vital to our well-being as a society. Thank you for your hard work.
To those whose intelligence exhibits itself in storytelling, creating, communicating, community building, encouraging, and innovating. Thank you. We are uplifted by your writing, your art, and your ability to bring people together in difficult times. Together we turn to music, to funny movies and TV shows, to art and video games, and say “Thank you. Today this brought me joy. Today this gave me what I needed to keep going.”
In a world post-COVID I hope to see:
More creativity.
“I haven’t got a creative bone in my body,” says the man churning out loaf after loaf of perfectly baked sourdough bread.
With not much else to do, people are turning to their creative side in self-isolation (whether they realize it or not). Pre-COVID, it was easy to brush off the call to creativity with a simple “I’m too busy,” or a “Me? Paint? I’m no artist!”
The pressure people put on themselves to succeed at a new creative endeavour seems to dissolve in the face of quarantine-induced boredom. It’s fun and exciting to watch as friends, family, colleagues and even strangers rummage through old Tupperware bins and dig up tattered sketchbooks, and watercolour paints — or blow the dust off an old guitar case.
When there’s no opportunity to ‘keep up with Johnsons,’ it becomes hard to compare oneself to others. You can’t really go out and buy the newest, fanciest keyboard, or camera. You’ve gotta use what you’ve got. These limitations often lead to inspiration and the creation of all things weird and wonderful.
Daniel Johnston is just one example of an artist who swept the world off its feet with a ballpoint pen, a toy piano and a $59 boombox. Most of his work consisted of cassettes recorded alone in his home. To this day, he is renowned as an incredibly influential artist in music history.
Here’s a list of creative things you can do even if you’re “not creative:”
- Make some music Sing a tune. Download some free music-making software. DIY an instrument. Pick up an instrument you bought and never learned how to play.
- Learn a magic trick Or two… or ten.
- Have an at-home photoshoot (No camera no problem. Use your Phone!)
- Learn how to edit your at-home photoshoot using photoshop Adobe is temporarily offering students free access to the creative cloud.
- Learn the basics of cinematography.
- Learn to cook or (better yet, learn to bake.)
- Learn to code
- Learn to sew, bead, or embroider. Make a macrame plant hanger.
- Design your dream house using a free 3D modelling application called Sketchup.
- Travel the world on Google Earth.
- If your hair is short, you might have to learn to cut it yourself!
- Learn to do a crazy makeup look.
- Learn a dance Tik Tok, anyone?
In a world post-COVID I hope to see:
Less Perfectionism — More Fun!
In the past few weeks, I’ve laughed out loud at videos of families, couples, and roommates grooving across slippery linoleum floors in sweatpants and big, fluffy socks. I’ve enjoyed live streams of friends and acquaintances belting out their favourite song accompanied by an old, out of tune guitar.
This global pandemic has allowed a lot of us to reject the mentality that we need to be perfect — whether that be in relation to our dance moves, our appearance, or our creative endeavours.
It lets us say — “hell, it’s a global pandemic who cares if I look a little goofy?”
After all, sparking joy is the priority — not perfection.
In a world post-COVID I hope to see:
More positive online spaces; more healthy consumption of digital media.
Is social media a total waste of time? What about video games? Streaming a TV show or movie?
Well, that depends. Determining whether you consume digital media in a way that is healthy versus a way that is unhealthy requires a bit of self-reflection. Monitor how, when, and why you do what you do online, and how that makes you feel. Assess: Did your most recent interaction with digital media make you feel uplifted? Inspired? Joyful? Did you learn something new, or look at something from a different perspective? Did it make you feel connected with your community?
If you’re using social media, reading the news, playing video games or watching TV with intention, probably it did. For example, tuning into an Instagram live stream to watch your favourite artist perform a virtual concert — that could be a whole lot of fun!
What’s not fun is when you find yourself trapped in a hard-to-escape rabbit hole of scrolling or binge-watching. Thirty minutes of watching or reading the news could make you feel informed. Setting your TV or radio to the news channel all day could make you feel hopeless, exhausted or anxious.
Watching a Netflix show can be a great way to reward yourself for doing something awesome. (ie, working on your paper, cooking yourself a healthy meal, exercising.) Watching Netflix doesn’t feel so awesome when that’s all you’ve been doing all day. Limiting your consumption is key.
Those who over-consume digital media, or spend too much time on social networking sites will undoubtedly be forced to acknowledge and potentially change their online habits. (Ex. limiting consumption.)
On the opposite end of the spectrum, those who demonize digital media will miss out on all the unique, wacky and wonderful virtual communities that have emerged, and continue to emerge from this new way of life.
Together, we’ve all had to adapt, overcome, and gather in virtual spaces. These online communities have been flooded with messages of support, kindness, and beautiful art to read, look at, and listen to.
This pandemic and the way in which it forces us to analyze our online activity will ultimately lead to more positive, and healthy digital spaces.
In a world post-COVID I hope to see:
More Accessibility.
The experience of being isolated at home is not novel for those living with a disability, chronic illness or pain.
Over 15% of the world’s population experiences some form of disability. People with disabilities are less likely to find employment, thus creating a substantial socioeconomic barrier between able-bodied and non-able bodied individuals. This socioeconomic barrier is in no way a reflection of the capabilities of those with disabilities, but rather a reflection of the way the world views disabled members of our global community.
American comedian and actor Zach Anner does a wonderful job demonstrating the lack of physical accessibility in his attempt to navigate one of America’s most ‘accessible’ cities (New York City) in his quest to find the elusive rainbow bagel.
A ‘simple’ task that would have taken an able-bodied individual only an hour or so to do took Zach an entire day.
Now imagine the challenges that someone like Zack might face simply getting to their place of work. These physical barriers can be part of the reason that some people with disabilities struggle to find employment.
As much of the global workforce shifts from working in-office to working from home, it becomes more and more clear that we do not have to be physically together to do and create great things. Even the jobs that employers assured us could never be done from home are being done remotely with great success. This could be a game-changer in many ways — especially for those for whom it might be challenging to physically get to their place of work.
As employers become increasingly comfortable with the idea of employees work from home, and employees gain experience working from home, I hope to see an increase in employment opportunities that allow for online rather than in-person communication between supervisors, staff and colleagues. This will create employment opportunities that are both accessible, and that could extend beyond municipal, provincial and even international borders. (That’s exciting!)
However, it is important to note that accessibility extends beyond the physical. When able-bodied individuals return to what they consider “normal life”, they must remember and reflect on how it felt to be isolated.
The online activities, games and events they engaged in that brought them joy and a sense of community are the same virtual spaces that we need to ensure are maintained even AFTER social distancing measures are lifted. Online spaces make it possible for those with accessibility needs to be active members of their community from home.
Let us continue organizing online events, hosting live streams, giving virtual tours, playing online games, creating collaborative virtual art projects, etc. The voices of those with disabilities are, and always will be important. Virtual platforms amplify and allow us to hear these voices.
In a world post-COVID I hope to see:
A world of more disciplined people.
If you’ve taken a psychology class, you might have heard of the “marshmallow test” in which a young child sits in front of a bowl containing a delicious, sweet marshmallow. If the child goes 15 minutes without eating this puffy sugar cube, they will receive a second equally yummy treat. ‘Passing’ the test (aka waiting the 15 minutes) has been linked to greater success later in life.
Life in social isolation might feel to many of us like one giant marshmallow test — (one in which the marshmallow is the next juicy episode of our favourite reality TV show.) Choosing the reality TV show over important work, or self-care practices like exercise or meditation might feel good at first — but procrastination could lead to stronger feelings of anxiety when work begins to pile up.
Working in your favourite pyjama pants, waking up whenever you please, having unlimited access to a freezer stocked full of your favourite ice cream; at first glance, these working or studying-from-home perks might seem like a dream come true. However, over-indulgence in these at-home benefits can become barriers to productivity and even happiness when we let go of our daily routines.
If you’ve never had to self-discipline or motivate, now is a perfect time to practice. When we return to our lives post-self-isolation, I hope that we will do so as more disciplined individuals, well versed in self-management — each having established our own, unique and healthy routines.
In a world post-COVID I hope to see:
A Global Community that is Unified and Compassionate.
When the news about the Coronavirus first broke in late 2019, western media presented the narrative in such a way that divided the global community into two distinct groups: “us” versus “them.” Western ignorance held onto the eurocentric, delusional idea that, in our globalized world, the global north could somehow remain untouched by Coronavirus.
The problem worsens when world leaders like Donald Trump label the Coronavirus “The Chinese Virus.” Trump, and other leaders of his kind look past the fact that zoonotic diseases, (ones originating from animals) that have caused global pandemics throughout history can be traced back to almost every continent (including those a part of the global north). No country is immune, and no one country should be subjected to blame. This divisive way of thinking creates its own virus — one of rampant racism and xenophobia.
Pandemics don’t operate within the confines of eurocentricity. There is no “us” or “them.” As a global community, we’re all in this together, and we ALL have to work as a team to flatten the curve. We need to listen to one another and learn from one another.
Picture this: A teacher promises that if all of their students work quietly for 10 minutes, they can go for recess. If one student in the classroom is noisy, that student prevents all their peers from going outside to play. Whether you visualize this classroom being your immediate community or the global community as a whole, the message is the same. We ALL have to work together. Don’t be that person who attends a party, or fails to practice social distancing, (because we’d really all like to go for recess!)
Another reason the US continues to be the epicentre of the COVID pandemic is that their culture (and most other western cultures) are highly individualistic, meaning, the independence and autonomy of the individual is placed at a greater value than that of the community. Collectivist cultures where the well-being of the group is prioritized over the freedom of the individual could be one of the reasons that South Korea was able to flatten its curve so quickly.
I hope that as a result of this virus, people are able to more easily identify biases in the media, and exercising critical thinking skills.
In a world post-COVID I hope to see:
More Support for Local and Independent Businesses.
With COVID-19 threatening the livelihood of small businesses, we are all faced with the possibility that, when this is all over, our favourite restaurants, quirky plant shops, and cafes might no longer be. When we risk losing these independent businesses, we begin to appreciate just how much they enrich our community. It’s not the Amazons or the McDonalds of the world who remember your name when you visit or start brewing your favourite caffeinated beverage upon entry.
So, instead of ordering your next book online, have Audreys Books deliver right to your house. Instead of getting take out from a chain restaurant, consider local options!
Check out this awesome directory of local Edmonton businesses you can support when you need to stock up: https://www.shopyeg.ca/
Author bio: Emma Hole, Student Recruitment, Engagement and Communications Coordinator (2019–2020 internship) and current BA student.
