Lessons From Quarantine:
Glimpses of a better future
So many of us have been wondering what the world will look like when we emerge from our homes after sheltering-in-place for so long. Will we be in mourning? Will the economy recover? Will our mental health and intimate relationships be intact? Will we shake hands with strangers and hug friends as freely? While it might be wise to assume the Japanese greeting of bowing, I know many of us are desperately missing the intimacy that comes with hugging or closely walking and talking with loved ones.
It’s easy to simply wish for things to return to normal so we could all stop being so scared. Yet there are things I’m enjoying about this quarantine, and other things that have revealed themselves to be broken. As Leonard Cohen urges us in His song Anthem: “Ring the bells that still can ring, forget your perfect offering. There’s a crack, a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in.”
It is through these cracks that I keep catching a glimpse, in the midst of this pandemic, of a future I’d rather have.
With soaring unemployment and emergency rooms overrun, people are truly suffering. But it’s still worth pausing to notice the blue sky (literally and metaphorically) that can be gleaned from this period. There are the little things, like the dogs being especially happy to have constant…
