The coronavirus pandemic of the past couple months has turned out to be the some of the most difficult days I’ve ever faced.
Within a span of just the first 30 days of the nationwide shelter-in-place, I’ve lost my job that I loved with an exciting medtech startup due to impacts from coronavirus. On the dating scene, I’ve been “friend-zoned” three times. Most heart-rending of all, a family member has begun having serious (non-COVID related) health issues, swiftly adding more emotional burdens to myself as well as my entire immediate and extended family who already have their own health and safety weighing heavily on their minds.
As the Bay Area began locking down to stop the spread of the virus, I decided to temporarily move back with my parents to wait out coronavirus together, somewhat bringing full-circle a strange and unexpected déjà vu. My life was the “Great Recession” all over again, a decade later: single, unemployed, recently graduated, and living at home with the parents.
It’s a depressing enough situation that, by all accounts, I should probably be seeking therapy by now. Or dependent on a bottle. But I’m not, something I credit foremost to God’s good grace.
Moreoever, I think that older millennials like myself have learned to not give up easily. We’ve endured not only the recession, but have also experienced society forever change after 9/11. We’ve grown up through an era of rapid technological change, advancements in the way we communicate with each other, and dot-com booms and busts. We’ve lived through conflicts in the Middle East, increasing racial tensions and political polarization, mass shootings and bombings. We’ve all had to grow up a little faster, so I think these events, in some way, have made us a scrappy bunch of young adults.
And so as dismal and familiar as my current circumstances are, I look back and see that I am not the same fresh-faced 22-year old. The simple fact that I persevered through that terrible recession has changed me, made me a little tougher and a little wiser. Don’t get me wrong; I’m not living life as if everything was just dandy. I might not know when I can exit the unemployment line. I don’t know if or when I’ll ever find love. But what I have learned is how to not waste this pause in my life.
Maybe you’re unemployed like me, who has had their life and career rudely interrupted yet again. Or you’re a new graduate wondering what to do now. You might be one of the countless others who are anxious, frustrated, and just plain bored of this pandemic and the shelter-in-place. There’s a lot that’s already been said, but I want to offer some encouragement on how we can best redeem this unusual time we’ve been given.
Sharpen Proficiencies
#QuarantineHobbies are in. Sourdough bread is a trending thing now! As tempting as it has been to spend the hours binging TV shows (which I certainly have done more than my fair share), the shelter-in-place has provided me so much time to learn or refine the skills that can help me in life when I finally get the chance to leave the house. I’ve been taking a couple classes that will enhance my leadership capabilities at my church. The extra time has also allowed me to focus on my ever elusive goal of learning Mandarin!
There are so many great courses that are completely free on Coursera and edX that you could practically receive a college education. And many universities are switching to a more heavily virtual learning model, which, while a bummer for students who want the real college experience, could open more distance learning opportunities for the rest of us toward an actual certificate or degree.
And, if you wouldn’t mind me briefly getting on my soapbox: one course that some of my friends on both sides of the coronavirus spectrum of opinions could take is a primer on clinical research and basic biostatistics. Knowledge of this will allow one to more critically evaluate the various COVID-19 related claims and discoveries based on “scientific evidence” that seem to be announced daily. These same friends might also benefit from a course in social psychology and human behavior. With “fake news”, conspiracy theories, and an overall mistrust in the way this pandemic in handled, it would do well to learn about biases and prejudices, when to engage someone, and when to conclude that you’ve met someone who is completely ignorant of their own ignorance.
Keeping your mind engaged in learning will consequently keep it disengaged from thoughts of fear, anger, and anxiety. I think for this reason, a little distraction isn’t a bad thing.
Serve People
If there’s one thing that society has learned from this pandemic, it’s that we need each other. Yes, we all need each other to stay home and social distance to help flatten the curve, but we also need each other to stay emotionally healthy.
Let’s keep our eyes and ears open for ways that we can help those who have been affected by coronavirus or the shelter-in-place. Early on, I realized that many of the moms at my church became long-term substitute teachers literally overnight. I knew that their “students” might eventually threaten to incite a riot over their weary parents’ amateur teaching styles. So I started a weekly geography/Christian missions lesson for kids over Zoom to give the parents a brief respite. It’s become something that the parents look forward to and something I enjoy putting together and sharing every week.
Let’s be super supportive of those who are using the shelter-in-place to make a life adjustment, pivot their careers, or finally try something new. One of my greatest joys of the shelter-in-place so far as been helping my friends’ kids launch their venture Duck+Chick. These two sisters are hoping to spread love and kindness to a world in need by donating the proceeds from leather goods that they hand make to charities helping kids their age. I’ve been using my amateur production skills to put together video interviews of them with local influencers. I’m so inspired by their vision and honored to support them!
Let’s serve each other sacrificially and think of others more highly than ourselves. You might choose to spend a little more on a product from a local small business instead of just going with the lowest price on Amazon. Perhaps it’s supporting the family-owned restaurant down the street (and ordering directly through them) instead of opting for the $20 family meal from a national chain. And I know that this might rub the wrong way some of my friends who believe precautions such as wearing masks and enforcing sheltering-in-place are an unnecessary overreaction, but thinking more highly of others might mean sacrificing your convictions for a season, out of love for others who believe these precautions are necessary.
Seek Purpose
Those who know me personally know that I am a devout Christian. I believe in a God who is both all-powerful and omniscient. While I don’t have an answer to why God is allowing me to undergo this adversity and letting just about the entire world to experience this pandemic, I trust that He has a purpose that is greater than myself and my human understanding. I believe firmly that this trial is ultimately for my good and for God’s glory.
You don’t necessarily have to agree with my Christian worldview (although I do hope you would consider it), but having a perspective that this moment in time has purpose can bring hope. We’ve seen the best of America and the world unite together to do good for one another. We’re seeing a new scrappy group of young adults in the making in our graduates who will use their resourcefulness to improve our society.
As you continue through this coronavirus pandemic, seek purpose in the every day. Set aside any cynicism you may have toward science, the media, or your government, even for a brief moment, and recognize the blessings, both big and small, that you have. The fact that you can wake up healthy and safe should be reason enough to celebrate.
We may still have yet to see light at the end of the tunnel, but we’re going to make it through this. But if we spend this shelter-in-place idling around just complaining, finding someone or something to blame, and thinking selfishly, we could very well emerge worse off than we did before the pandemic, perhaps far “sicker” emotionally and relationally than COVID-19 can make us. Instead, let us seek to become better people. Let’s constantly express gratitude for what we have. Let’s always think of our neighbors more highly than ourselves. The Great Recession made a generation of 18–30 year olds like myself tougher, more prudent, and more resourceful; why shouldn’t this “coronavirus society” go down in history as compassionate and selfless?