Back in January, I had high hopes and expectations for 2020. The future was bright as a new decade dawned. Even just saying 2020 felt hopeful. In March, all of those illusions came crashing down. While the global lockdowns are starting to lift, I’m coming to the realization that things aren’t going back to the old way.

The generation of Americans that endured the Great Depression were forever impacted by that experience. Their life choices and habits were dramatically different that even those of just the generation before. They were scarred by that experience, one that they never forgot.

We’ve all endured a dramatic world event. We’ve spent two months seeking shelter in our homes, hiding from a new pathogen that has upended our way of life. We will be forever shaped by this experience.

The Great Depression was difficult to endure, but the lessons learned didn’t end up being all negative. That generation developed an overarching attitude of personal responsibility in their finances. They used the experience of financial collapse to shape their worldview and how they handled themselves in the future. They were frugal so as to never be at the mercy of that kind of threat again.

Hopefully we’ve learned a lesson or two. Hopefully in quarantine you’ve become acutely aware of the importance of the Sacraments. Mass at home may confer the same spiritual benefits through a Spiritual Communion, but it’s hardly a substitute for the communal prayer that is the liturgy. Hopefully this experience will end our taking the Mass for granted.

Hopefully the time with our families has made us appreciate that a general sense of busyness doesn’t result in quality relationships. Hopefully we’ve taken time to slow down and enjoy our children. Hopefully we’ve taken time to play and enjoy. Hopefully we’ve taken stock of the direction of our lives. Hopefully we’ve used that information to reorient ourselves in the direction that we wish to go.

These past two months will forever shape who we are and how we operate. May it be for the better.

Tags: Community