Has COVID19 ruined the sense of community?

 Post 416: Has COVID19 ruined Our Sense of Community?

 

 Picture this. Somebody runs out of sugar. The grocery stories are all closed. So you run to your neighbor to borrow that proverbial cup of sugar and then you return the sugar bowl after you use it! No big deal in pre-pandemic times.

Or, you need somebody to help you lift heavy furniture because your spouse has gotten too old to help you lift heavy objects. You go to the handsome young man down the street or down the hall, and that handsome young man with the rippling muscles helps you move the furniture as you redecorate your room.  No big deal during pre-pandemic times!

You finish a business meeting. You shake hands with all involved. You get a feeling of satisfaction or job well done as you shake each hand. No big deal during pre-pandemic times.

In Europe, it is customary for males and females to exchange kisses on the cheek with people you know, you exchange the kiss, you acknowledge the other person. This makes you happy to see that person. No big deal during pre-pandemic times.

You want to visit Grandma or Grandpa in their nursing home. You want your kids to get to know their grandparents. Normally, when you visit them, you all go down to the cafeteria, or go for a walk around the garden, no big deal during pre-pandemic times.

Now when the old lady runs out of sugar and all the grocery stores are closed, nobody helps the old lady because every neighbor is a potential Typhoid Mary as people fear catching COVID19. If you need extra sugar, you are out of luck. You are all alone. You are on your own thanks to COVID19.

Need that cute young man to move your furniture? Nope, that cute young man lives with his very vulnerable parents, so because he fears COVID19 exposure, he will not help you move that furniture to keep his elderly parents, his very pregnant wife and children safe. Too bad. You are all alone. You are on your own thanks to COVID19.

You now go to Zoom for your business meetings. Out goes the handshake. Out goes the actual physical presence of people. You meet with people all alone in your apartment. You want to consult your partner seated next to you. You cannot go over something you forgot. You pick up the phone, but the line is busy so you are stuck just leaving a voicemail. No more spontaneous contact with your coworker since everyone is in isolation working from home thanks to COVID19.

Grandma cannot see her kids except through a window. It is very lonely for Grandma not to be able to hug and kiss her children and grandchildren. Grandma cannot go downstairs to be with others. She is kept isolated in her room for her own safety from COVID19. She is all alone. She is on her own thanks to COVID19.

What has the fear of COVID19 done to our sense of humanity? our willingness to help strangers in need? our willingness to look in on our elderly neighbors? our ability to just hug, kiss, touch, handshake another human being? Is the fear of catching COVID19 destroying the fabric of society? What do people do to alleviate the loneliness? More Zoom? 

Sadly, I have no solutions to this dilemma. Therefore, I wait for your comments on how to solve the crisis of loneliness, depression, and the feeling of isolation peo0ple are feeling during this pandemic. What can be done to solve this crisis?