A temporary moment.
It isn’t often that humanity is brought to its knees in dealing with something like the pandemic we’re currently facing. It’s a tragedy that lives are lost almost like a lottery, and that the virus still shows no sign of coming to an end. This ‘new’ normal has only just begun, although in reality what we’re facing as a society now – the lockdown, self-isolation, and quarantine – isn’t the ‘new’ normal at all.
Instead, this is a temporary moment in our society as health workers battle to rehabilitate patients, manufacturers and suppliers work overtime to keep shelves stocked, and countless others continue to work so that our world keeps turning. But it isn’t normal, nothing about this period is normal.
I cannot express my thanks enough to key workers worldwide, and it seems to me as if clapping for a few moments on a Thursday evening is the bare minimum I can do.
Note: what follows is not intended to take away from the severity of the current pandemic. If you are still worried about Covid-19 and the fight to contain it, please do not feel like you need to continue reading past this point.
The other unhelpful thought is of going ‘back to’ normal, as if the society we had prior to this pandemic was something we should aspire to return to. This rose-tinted view of how we lived, filled with romanticism and wonder, will not return.
In truth, the ‘new’ normal (which will surface once we get through this) is as unprecedented as the pandemic which has brought us all to a halt. During this time, we shouldn’t be lusting over the past as if it was glorious, nor should we give this temporary period accolades of being full of war-time spirit.
Because our society before had fundamental faults full of greed and selfishness, and whilst this temporary period had highlighted some of the very best in humanity, it’s also highlighted the worst (i.e. stockpiling, fraud, inequalities).
Right now it is a difficult time to look forward and set out a kind of vision for how our society could change, especially when loved ones are dying too soon, Governments’ are covering up the extent of the outbreak, and there really is no sight of respite from the virus.
Unfortunately, the truth is that Covid-19 has provided Earth with a point to reflect on the direction we’re headed. Whether that’s the drop in pollution helping with global targets on climate change, societies around the world working together with neighbours so that no one is left behind, or the shift to working from home that saves both time, energy and money.
What is clear is that a return to ‘normal’ will not happen. Normality as we knew it has passed.
Therefore, whilst we are battling this pandemic and dealing with its horrors, each taking responsibility to limit its spread in whichever way we can in order to save as many lives as possible, we should be hopeful about the kind of society we will become after this.
This step change, this moment of reflection, comes once in a blue moon, it’s up to us how we rebuild. We can end homelessness, stop poverty in the UK, close the gap between the rich and the poor, and most importantly invest in public services including the NHS so that Britain becomes a more equal, fairer society.
Our country can and will change beyond recognition – we can reform institutions, embrace technology and change British culture.
But first, we must remember to protect precious lives by staying at home to flatten the curve.