One year ago, the World Health Organization declared the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak to be a pandemic. A few days later, my employer told me that I needed to work from home – indefinitely. Around the same time, my daughter's school closed and students were required to receive instruction online. My birthday, a few weeks later, was celebrated quietly.
It has been a difficult year for a lot of people. Many people have had a much more difficult time than I have. I'm incredibly fortunate to have a job that can be performed from home. But the biggest benefit has been family.
I have tried to imagine what my experience of the pandemic would have been like if I was 28. At that time, I was living with a roommate in a city where I didn't know many people. I had no nearby family or relations. For much of my time there I didn't have a girlfriend. What would have happened if the pandemic began then? Would I have gone back home to stay with my mother? Would my roommate, a foreign student, returned home? Work wasn't so steady then. Would I have had enough money? Would I have been alone in the city for a whole year, waiting for the pandemic to end? In the time before iPhones and Zoom calls and Slack and JIRA, how would I have gone about my life without going crazy?
Instead, I've had more time with my family than I've had in the past 7 years. For some married couples this might have been a strain, but my wife and I have handled the stuck-at-home life pretty well. I've gotten to see my daughter much more often because I don't spend 3 hours commuting every day. She, in particular, has retained a mostly positive attitude about the situation. She likes being at home, spending time on Zoom or FaceTime with friends. She does miss seeing her grandparents. She occasionally misses seeing her friends in person when there's a birthday or other significant event. Those are the times when the reality of the pandemic is strongly felt. But day by day, life for all of us has been better for the fact that we are all together.
So, on the anniversary of the pandemic, I'm most thankful for them – my wife and daughter – who have gotten me through this year like no other.
It has been a difficult year for a lot of people. Many people have had a much more difficult time than I have. I'm incredibly fortunate to have a job that can be performed from home. But the biggest benefit has been family.
I have tried to imagine what my experience of the pandemic would have been like if I was 28. At that time, I was living with a roommate in a city where I didn't know many people. I had no nearby family or relations. For much of my time there I didn't have a girlfriend. What would have happened if the pandemic began then? Would I have gone back home to stay with my mother? Would my roommate, a foreign student, returned home? Work wasn't so steady then. Would I have had enough money? Would I have been alone in the city for a whole year, waiting for the pandemic to end? In the time before iPhones and Zoom calls and Slack and JIRA, how would I have gone about my life without going crazy?
Instead, I've had more time with my family than I've had in the past 7 years. For some married couples this might have been a strain, but my wife and I have handled the stuck-at-home life pretty well. I've gotten to see my daughter much more often because I don't spend 3 hours commuting every day. She, in particular, has retained a mostly positive attitude about the situation. She likes being at home, spending time on Zoom or FaceTime with friends. She does miss seeing her grandparents. She occasionally misses seeing her friends in person when there's a birthday or other significant event. Those are the times when the reality of the pandemic is strongly felt. But day by day, life for all of us has been better for the fact that we are all together.
So, on the anniversary of the pandemic, I'm most thankful for them – my wife and daughter – who have gotten me through this year like no other.