Living in a bubble
It has been 3 months since the beginning of the emergency state in my country, caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. For a few weeks now, measures are quite relaxed and life is pretty much back to normal. I believe that the only restrictions left are concerning the entertainment business and to be more precise, theaters and concerts. Even night clubs could open in a few days. Looking at people outside, the only sign left of the pandemic is an occasional mask,worn below the chin, of course, and the abundance of disinfectant in every closed space you enter. Faces are relaxed, smiles are visible, people are holding hands and hugging each other. It makes you think that you just lived a bad dream and you have come out of it in a blink of an eye. In reality, looking all around me, I see people having different reactions to the current state we are in — most of my friends and relatives are relieved that everything seems to be over, but there are a lot of people still scared, not leaving their homes, not willing to meet people outside their bubble. Normal people, just like you and me, scared of their well beings and the one of their families.
There is also another aspect I noticed recently. A lot of people, even the ones who were most strict about the measures and the social distancing, have started to doubt the validity and the reasoning behind all of it. Does not it seem weird, they say, that in a few weeks all restrictions were lifted and cases continued to go down? Is it not suspicious that none of the predictions of the government actually happened? I for sure cannot answer those questions. I am one of those regular people who believe that the virus was real and it is still out there, but that also, maybe, just maybe, there was a geopolitical reason to act on it the way governments acted. I guess regular people like me will never find the answer on that, but it for sure makes you wondering if we have not been all in a bad social experiment. Something like Big Brother, but with a bigger audience.
During the two tough months of the pandemic, when everyone was home and daily news were only about new cases and deaths, I realized that I am somehow happy about the situation. I had the unique chance to spend time at home with my loved one, not running from task to task and from one meeting to another, having the time to read a book on the couch, and watch plenty of movies. Of course, my great intentions to visit museums virtually, or watch old quality movies, did not realize on 100%, as at some point we were just watching TV series on Netflix, but overall it was a great experience for me. Yes, I missed seeing my friends, I missed going out and being able to walk around freely, but the benefits were bigger, maybe also because I knew it was temporary. We trained, we cooked, we played board games, we hugged and kissed, and we laughed together.
When I found out that the restrictions were going loose, I was excited and worried at the same time. Excited because I would have the chance to see my parents and friends, visit places, travel, just sit in a park. And worried because my bubble was going to break and I was feeling so well, sitting at home in my comfort zone. It was a weird reaction for me, I guess, as I am known as a very social, rarely staying at home person. But I took it as a sign that maybe I needed to slow down and take a break from all the distractions around me, really focus on me and the things dear to my heart. I started writing in this isolation period, as I am writing now this article. It has always been my dream to put my thoughts on paper and maybe share them with a broader audience, I just never found the time to do it. I was not scared, I was just de-prioritizing my dreams.
This is what I learned from all of this crazy and somewhat scary months: to be brave, to put first me and my loved ones, and never to give up on dreams. The pandemic can put on hold our lives, but not our minds and hopes. Never forget that.
