... there was a blogger who liked to write, had many thoughts and adventures to share, but little time or energy to do so. Then the world stopped.
Welcome to 2020. The year a virus brought the world to a stand-still. A virus found in (possibly) bats got transmitted to a pangolin (or similar other mammal) that was sold in a live animal food market in Wuhan, China, and from there made the leap to human (very generalized version of the current April 2020 hypothesis) and then from person to person, causing the respiratory disease designated as
Covid-19 (a.k.a.
severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2). This is not the first
zoonosis from a coronavirus to start in Asia (SARS in 2003, MERS in 2012, etc.), and probably won't be the last.
From Wuhan travelers spread it to other parts of China, and other countries. The first sick people appeared to be isolated cases, either arriving directly from Wuhan or having been in contact with someone who had been there. Then people who had been in contact with someone else who got sick. Then shit hit the fan. It became apparent that you didn't have to be showing symptoms to transmit the virus and things got scary. Some people exposed to the virus had mild symptoms (mild fever, coughing), others so serious (pneumonia) they required hospitalization. Country by country the number of positive cases grew exponentially. Hospital intensive care units were swamped. We had no natural immunity or vaccine to protect us from it, no tailored medication to fight it. "Social Distancing" and "proper and frequent hand washing" were on everyone's lips. We were sent home to stay safe and help keep others safe. To slow down the spread of the virus and give our healthcare professionals, our scientists and our governments time to find a solution.
We found ourselves in a scenario most people imagined only happened in disaster movies. We panicked and flocked to the grocery stores to stock up on whatever we might need to stay home for however long was required, resulting in the great toilet paper crisis of 2020.
Some people were home alone, others with their families, some with their flat/house mates. Some people were able to continue to do their jobs from home, as best they could depending on the demands of family, internet availability, or health. Others were not so lucky and were sent home without a job, some still paid for a while by their employers, others depending on government subsidies, others with no financial support at all. And then there were those who had to go work everyday, to keep things running for everyone. To care for the sick, the elderly. To provide food, medicines, masks. To manufacture or transport essential goods where needed. To search for a solution to protect everyone from the virus. Too often without the proper protective gear to ensure their own safety.
At one point
at least one third of the global population was under some form of lockdown, with varying conditions from country to country. In some places people were under strict instructions not to leave their homes unless absolutely necessary (for food, medicine, take out the trash, walk the dog...), and even then as little as possible. In others they were allowed to spend up to an hour a day outside for exercise. Some countries had strict enforcement and hefty fines for breaking the quarantine, while in others it was just a strong government recommendation.
We started out skeptical ("Outbreak in some distant country? I feel bad for them, thank goodness it won't happen here"), to worried but confident ("More news about that virus? Some people here have got it! Fortunately it's just isolated cases and everything is under control"), to shock ("How did the situation here deteriorate so quickly?!"), to anger ("Why hasn't my government done anything yet?!" or "Why did my government wait so long to order a lockdown / increase testing / obtain protective equipment?!" "What are those idiots doing breaking the quarantine?!"), to impatience and frustration ("How long do we have to stay locked in? Why can't we do X/Y/Z? It's not like I could get sick") to worried acceptance and hope that it would soon be over ("The first thing I'm going to do when I get out is...").
Schools closed, education at all levels migrated online. Students, teachers, parents... all had to adapt to the new reality: teachers had to figure out how to adapt their materials and deliver lessons remotely, students had to adapt to not being able to engage with their teachers or classmates and learn more independently, parents had to adapt to some degree of homeschooling. But not all had the necessary tools and means to do so. So for some students classes continued remotely, ranging from materials to read and homework to do, to interactive classes using videoconference tools. For others, nothing. The big question was how to evaluate the end of the academic year? General passing grades? Papers to be turned in? Online exams somehow? By some miracle face-to-face exams back in school?
With theaters, cinemas, concert halls and gyms closed, culture and sport migrated online as well. Free concerts would pop up either live through social media or a streaming of past events. Some films were released directly to paying streaming platforms (while others saw their release dates pushed back by several months). Athletes and gym instructors shared workout routines in videos, sometimes live as well. Religious services? Streamed over the internet, including the Pope's Easter Mass in an empty Basilica of Saint Peter in Rome. Having a drink with friends? Video conference calls!
Loved ones were lost, sometimes alone, and almost always without family or friends having the chance to say a proper farewell.
Neighbours came together from their balconies, windows, doorsteps, and clapped for essential workers, sang birthday songs (among others), or danced like crazy...
A global pandemic has shown us just how connected we all are, wherever we are. So the blogger thought she'd invite family, friends, colleagues - anyone interested really - to share their stories of this time, and maybe be inspired by each other. Or share a few laughs. Or tears. All in good company.
Welcome to the Global Coronadiaries.
