Post-COVID Predictions

Let’s play a guessing game! Try to predict when, if ever, your life will return to the way it was in pre-pandemic days. This will force you to think of your personal values, your confidence in science, and changes you anticipate in society. Then put your predictions aside, in a location you can locate a year from now and two years from now, to see how accurate your guesses were.

Everyone wants to know when it’s safe to stop wearing masks, when we can hug our friends and family and travel freely to distant locations. There’s no magic way for anyone to predict the future, so we are left with educated guesses and personal preferences to anticipate what’s ahead. I am thrilled to have had both doses of the Pfizer vaccine, but I also understand that no one knows exactly how much protection the vaccine will provide, especially considering possible variants.

Here are my predictions for my life:

1. Plane and Bus Travel. Since I already have a trip planned for this fall (rescheduled from 2020), I expect my first post-COVID plane ride will occur in October. After flying to Memphis, we will travel by bus to Memphis, Jackson, Birmingham, Mobile and New Orleans. I believe my tour of Civil Rights sites will occur mostly as scheduled but that participants will be masked and some degree of social distancing will occur. The buses will probably be large enough to allow for distancing of passengers. Parts of the tour are likely to be different than originally planned. We will probably hear of the deaths of some community elders, the hardships caused not just by the pandemic but also climate change emergencies and political controversies. It’s an important time in our history to become better acquainted with the history of racial conflicts and inequities, so I’m looking forward to the trip and to traveling with my best friend from high school.

2. Family. We have gotten into a routine of regular Zoom calls with our kids and grandkids so I am hoping that will continue, since they live far away. In person visits are likely to be infrequent and probably won’t occur until 2022. I will feel fortunate if we are able to arrange in person visits once a year.

3. Performances. It will be a long time before I feel comfortable attending crowded theater events. Since theater attendance was one of my favorite activities, this aspect of my life may not be returning to “normal.” While it’s possible to watch theater performances online, that does not have a lot of appeal to me. I don’t anticipate returning as a theater-goer anytime in the foreseeable future, especially since I preferred to travel to the theater by bus. I may consider performances that are outdoors.

Trip to Tacoma Zoo with niece and grandniece.

4. Museums and zoos. I have a renewed interest in museums and zoos, especially when they use ticketing and other measures to help keep crowds distanced. I anticipate making museum and zoo visits in the coming months, as one of the first “normal” activities I return to.

5. Indoor Dining. I have yet to have an indoor restaurant meal, but now that my husband and I have been vaccinated and indoor dining is again an option, we are likely to take advantage of this opportunity in the coming months. We will be looking for a good option in terms of safety precautions, menu, price and convenience.

6. Religious Services. My church has done a great job offering services through Zoom. I’ve even learned to appreciate the benefits – no “bad” weather or transportation concerns, names and faces of most participants prominently displayed, ability to adjust sound as needed, no need to get dressed up, no need to allow travel time, no need to sign up for kitchen duty or to create a potluck dish. However, I miss the personal contact and the informal conversations that occur before and after church events. Our church leaders are wanting to be very cautious about in person gatherings. Chances are it will be 2022 before we return to regular services in our building, although I’m hoping there will be small, social-distanced events in our building before that. I believe we will continue to offer many programs and services on Zoom, even when in person events are occurring, because it suits the needs of many congregation members.

7. Excursions. Some of my friends have continued to take vacations during COVID times. I have not done that except for one 2-night stay at Seabeck Conference Center. I am now itching to go somewhere, ideally a spot my husband and I can easily drive to and stay a few days, with cooking facilities available, so that we can limit meals in public locations. We are fortunate to have so many beautiful locations nearby, so we hope to visit some this spring and summer.

8. Shopping. It’s been a year since I’ve done normal shopping. My family is now accustomed to picking up pre-ordered groceries, ordering products online, getting Costco deliveries to our home, and only entering stores when there’s an urgent need for specific items not easily obtained or selected online. We might never return to leisurely shopping trips where we enjoy free samples, compare prices and ingredients, read the verses on every greeting card in a display, and look for unique hand-made gift items in small shops catering to visitors. I may wander through a few stores just because I can and to see if products and merchandising have changed in the past year, but my in person shopping may be done more as an effort to support local businesses than as an actual need. There’s one exception: my husband and I want to purchase a new mattress and have been reluctant to do that without exploring the options by visiting mattress stores.

9. Health and Hair. It’s now time to catch up on medical and hair appointments that were postponed due to the pandemic. The vaccine has made me more comfortable entering clinics, hospitals, the dental office, and my usual hair salon. I’m assuming that most of us will continue to be cautious about hand-washing, masks, staying home when sick, and other precautions. I will soon have my first haircut in a year. It’s been forty years since my hair was this long and I’m ready to return to a style which keeps my hair out of my face and gives me a “new look” in recognition of the transition we are all going through.

10. Cars. My husband and I are fortunate to have been able to purchase a new hybrid car this year. We were seeking more safety features, such as the back-up camera and available 4-wheel drive. Ironically, we also looked for a car that would be comfortable for passengers, since we often provided rides to friends when traveling to local events. We also hoped for future visits of kids and grandkids. There has not been one guest in the car since it was purchased. If the passengers have been vaccinated, I may be open to offering rides again, but there has not yet been a need or request for that.

11. Exercise. I used to participate several times per week in an exercise class at the local community center. No classes have been held there in the past year and I have not heard of plans to reopen. I would not hesitate to reenroll when classes begin again, since I need the exercise and have not done well doing exercises at home, despite available online programs and written instructions to use at home. I look forward to resuming that activity, but I predict it will be fall of 2021 at the earliest before I have that option and the classes will likely be limited at first due to the reluctance of many persons to return to group activities. Meanwhile, I hope to continue my walks around the neighborhood and monitoring my steps as a regular exercise practice.

12. Anxiety. Obtaining the vaccine has been a huge blessing in terms of worry about my health and that of those around me. That seems to also be true for most of my friends who have been vaccinated. I’m hoping that will result in better sleep and better health and happiness for everyone.

13. Hugs and handshakes. My friends insisted I add this item to my list. It will be a long time before I am comfortable with hugs and handshakes. I’m hoping handshakes go out of style and we have a new custom of fist or elbow bumps and namaste head nods with folded hands. I’ve never been comfortable with handshakes, so COVID times have worked well for me in that respect. I look forward to sharing hugs in family situations and with close friends, but I’ve actually welcomed not dealing with the issue of whether or not to hug and what type of hug to give in routine encounters with casual friends. I’ll use COVID as an excuse to avoid the practice as long as I can.

14. The New Normal. Certain aspects of life will never be the same. Any international travel I do will likely be limited to Canada and not before 2022. I will be hesitant to go on a cruise except possibly on an American lake or river. I expect to continue to attend meetings on Zoom and to have numerous friends and family members working at home. When I have the option of attending conferences in person or by Zoom, I’m likely to pick the Zoom option. Mask wearing will continue into 2022 and even longer in some situations.

I hope you enjoy thinking about the future and making plans for rewarding activities that will enhance your life in post-pandemic times. Don’t forget to check back in a year to see if your predictions (and mine) have come true.

Carolyn Hayek