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Can You Believe It’s Been Five Years?

Yes. Five years ago this week, the World Health Organization declared a global pandemic. The novel coronavirus, they warned, was spreading fast. With dire consequences for some of us.

Maybe you remember your initial reaction? Or maybe not.

In fact, the whole novel coronavirus story is a blur for many people. And there’s a reason for that. The Washington Post quotes a psychologist who told them early on, “Monotony misshapes memory.” And our Covid-19 days were nothing if not monotonous!

Mid-March 2020, I was confident everything would be okay. This new virus they were talking about on the news, it would be contained, we’d all be fine, and no, I didn’t need to cancel my plans for anything.

That didn’t last long.

Within days, the whole world began to change, and most of my plans were canceled for me.

Speaking? Who needed a speaker when they’d cut their whole event from the calendar? I wasn’t sure how I’d be able to make a living.

Dinner with friends? Better to make it a virtual dinner party instead; it wasn’t safe to have anyone in our homes.

Shopping? Stores were closing, some forever, and we were grateful for Amazon.

What did last was the impact of the pandemic.

First and foremost, more than a million Americans died from Covid. The effect on their families, friends, and communities was profound.

Many of us got sick, suffered for a few days, and then recovered. Some developed long-Covid; they got better slowly, and maybe not at all.

Schools switched to learning-at-home and the evidence suggests there wasn’t all that much learning going on. Many kids have never caught up to where they’d be if the pandemic hadn’t interrupted their education.

Thousands of businesses went out of business, leaving their employees, customers, and landlords in the lurch.

Other companies were able to shift to doing business online. Employees packed up their laptops and went home to begin working at their kitchen tables, selling and consulting virtually, and communicating with colleagues on Slack.

Some of us are back in the office now. Others are still Zooming it in. Working from home has been one of the COVID-induced changes we’ve clung to, loath to go back to our old commutes.

There were many less salutary shifts coming out of our collective COVID experience though. As The New York Times says, the trauma and tumult transformed us.

We don’t talk about the pandemic much anymore, do we?

And what we do remember is kind of a blur. How long were we stuck at home? Was it Delta or Omicron that finally got me? When did the vaccine begin to make the world feel less dangerous? And more polarized?

It’s worth taking a look at the lasting impact that collective experience had on all of us. I was reminded of it, reading “How Covid Remade America” in the NYT. That’s a gift link, and it’s worth your time.

What sticks with me is the changes in the way we communicate.

There’s the technology of it, of course. Teams and Zoom meetings have become ubiquitous. Conference rooms are outfitted with elaborate communication systems. Microphones and halo lights are typical home office accessories. And even those of us with limited technical skills have learned to use them.

In the process, we’ve lost a certain level of intimacy. You know me, I spent years developing relationships by talking into the ether and taking a few calls. Still, I believe a different kind of connection develops when we’re together live and in person.

More importantly, we’ve lost a certain level of civility.

The polarization that began during the pandemic has not eased at all now that we’re ostensibly back to normal. I’m appalled at the invective from social media users, elected officials, and the people who come to complain at school board, legislature, and city council meetings.

Somehow, I thought our public voices would go back to normal once life settled down after Covid. I was quite naïve, wasn’t I?

I have a high tolerance for vulgarity—I’ve certainly been known to indulge in it myself. But I spent years making sure I didn’t slip up when the On Air light was lit. And that was appropriate!

I wish we had a collective warning light to signal to all of us, “now’s not the time for ugly language.”

Now is the time for your language.

Leave a comment below and tell us what experiences and emotions are lingering for you, five years later.