Last week, I talked about how the world just stopped, almost overnight it seemed. While alarming, it was also impressive to see. For a little while, it felt like being part of a world wide community. It was powerful. Now, 2 months later, the world keeps spinning. Many places are still on Stay at Home and Safer at Home orders and guidelines and even as things open back up, we’re still spending much more time at home than we’re used to but it turns out the world doesn’t really stop. People are still getting married, divorced, having children. People still get sick from things other than COVID-19. People still move, buy cars, start businesses even. The world is still spinning.
In some ways, it’s inspiring to see how the world keeps moving even as we’re all facing an unprecedented time. While there have been other pandemics, none have taken hold in modern times when global travel is common. Yet here we are. We keep pushing and fighting and living. While I don’t have any big life events happening myself, my world didn’t stop for long. While it’s still much less busy than it was, I find myself doing many of the same things I was before. I still have to run out for a dog walk if someone is late or forgets. I am still busy. Doing different things certainly, delivering masks and sanitizer to my staff instead of training and dog treats. I still have plans (though they’re virtual now), and I still find myself craving free time. I’m not really sure what this all means. This post is definitely more observational than it is advising. Part of me wonders what would happen if we really did stop. I don’t know what that looks like. Some things have to keep moving (farms still have to be tended, utilities still have to be run etc) but we could probably figure out a way to not go to the grocery store for two weeks. To get everyone a paid vacation and just, all stop at the same time. What would that look like? If instead of an afternoon siesta, the whole world took a break at the same time. Not for a pandemic, just a break. I think it might be kind of neat. What do you think?