Believe it or not, March marks a year since our lives changed drastically. At the beginning of March 2020, COVID-19 spread throughout the world, requiring individuals to forgo their usual routines and adapt to a new lifestyle. Now, a year later, we are living our lives very differently.
Not only are we more conscious of our surroundings, but we are more hygienic. For example, if you go to a store or a gym, you will see employees or trainers sanitizing equipment and merchandise every few minutes. We spend more time washing our hands and taking care of ourselves than we ever did before.
“I forgot my mask!” is a common phrase you catch yourself saying, and traveling out of the country or state is an all-too-real distant dream. With all the isolated time we have been given during the pandemic, we have learned how to slow down, organize our homes and closets way too many times, bake banana bread, and enjoy the outdoors.
With all these new hobbies we have acquired, all we want to do is to continue living our lives the way we did a year ago, but it is not that simple.
University of Michigan senior, Donna Neuman, longs for an in person graduation ceremony more than anything. “I really just want a graduation and nothing else right now is important to me. My friends and I have turned a lot of negatives into positives; for example, instead of going out with friends we hang in together. Those things are replaceable, but graduating is not.”
Our lives have changed in many more ways than one. As we sit and reflect on the one-year anniversary of COVID-19, it is hard to believe that it has only been a year.
When I think about the timeline it almost feels like a century. Masks are a part of our uniform and getting tested for COVID is the new trend.
Since it is risky for older adults with health restrictions to spend time with their younger loved ones, we have utilized FaceTime or Zoom to still get our personal family time.
Fortunately, the vaccine has been distributed to many essential workers, and soon to the rest of the world.
With the new year, all we can hope for is to say goodbye to COVID-19 and hello to living. By March 2022, I hope for good health, love, and for our lives to be more adventurous and spent with the ones we love most.