We might have to accept that we’ll all be in isolation soon in order to avoid the coronavirus epidemic. Attending sporting events has now joined all things restricted, as well as further travel to and from Europe. I agree with these measures, because they are set in place to keep us all safe. However, they may not stop there. My freedom to move around might shrink less and less. With that in mind, I’ve started thinking about how I’m going to use my time if and when I’m restricted to the walls of my New York City apartment.
Previously, before the coronavirus, we were mutually interdependent with the world. We still are. However, our relationships were founded on egoistic connections. If I didn’t see the immediate benefit to myself of doing something, I didn’t do it. I think that’s true for all of us. In fact, I know it’s true for all of us. We built our culture on capitalizing on other people. It might even go without saying. But still, I believe this virus was sent to us as a wake-up call. The virus has forced us to eliminate all things frivolous and forced us back to home base in order to improve the connections between us.
Nature sent us a wake-up call. This virus is very smart. I’m saying that seriously. It’s acting like a computer program designed to correct humanity. It’s organizing us in a way we haven’t seen in a long time. Just look at the actions we’ve had to take in order to avoid it and beat it. It has put us back in our place, literally, and is forcing us to behave nicely with one another again. It is pressuring us to unite.
I don’t things will return to the way they were before. I see us coming out of this with a new frame of mind. We now have a common enemy, but we have started to recognize another enemy, the poor relationships between us, which was the reason why this virus was sent to us in the first place.
We can use this time of anxiety and pandemic to reflect on how we’ve been treating other people and improve our relationships. We might have a lot of time on our hands in the near future. We have an opportunity to improve the situation. We can choose to create a positive network of interdependence. We can use this time to slow down, connect, and enjoy friendship with the people close to home. Already things have calmed down between people. At my own workplace, people are already recognizing how interdependent they are and have become nicer. Which says a lot. Because it’s New York.
