The Pandemic

David Michael Newstead | The Philosophy of Shaving

Living through the pandemic was a little like The Chronicles of Narnia. A lifetime seemed to be jammed into a relatively short duration. There were a lot of memories too numerous to mention here: good moments, unique things, difficult stretches as we all navigated one stage after another in a global crisis. Two or three years went by. Then, things relented, not overnight, but at some vague point, we left the pandemic behind. Mentally, I mean. Everyone was over it, even if Covid-19 remained. The memories faded. And that warped timeline exerted less and less influence over our daily lives. The world steadily moved on to brand new disasters. Today, years later, it’s something I alternatively reflect on in-depth or forget took place at all. Was it just a bizarre dream?

Most big historical events have only been things I’ve read about decades or centuries after the fact. But to actually experience that transition from one distinct, seismic chapter to another is educational, if not disturbing. There was a gradual turning of the page, then it was over. Now it’s just another event floating in the imperfect waters of the past. Do people remember it at all or do they choose not to? Maybe everything is a blur after a while.

All year, I’ve struggled to write this post for no one in particular. I’m just trying to process what we went through and put it into words. Now and then, I’m reminded of the pandemic in small ways, many of which are disappearing from view or have already gone away.

Old signs in hallways and entrancesComedy videos without audiences or laughter Direction stickers plastered to a grocery store floorQR code menusStreateries Extra face masks I don’t use anymore, but now I’m a little afraid to get rid ofRandom hobbies I acquired for six months and then shoved into a cabinetMy tattered vaccination cardStockpiles of toilet paper A long list of projects and to-do list items that kept me occupied

At some point, I made a YouTube playlist to recreate going to the movie theater back when that was impossible. The playlist had ambient noise of audience members finding their seats and chatting, commercials and those dumb trivia clips, then upcoming trailers, and, of course, the feature presentation sequence before the movie starts. The pandemic was all about finding creative ways to pass the time, but one day the time passed. The real impacts often feel too big to contemplate: socially, politically, or medically. And like the rest of it, people forgot all about them anyway and moved on.

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