Well here we are again in iso-lockdown version 2.0. We have been here before of course, in March/April this year. But this time around something feels distinctly different. There is a general air of exhaustion which seems to be added to by the wet, dreary conditions of another Melbourne winter. We also no longer feel like we’re all in this together. Watching insta videos of my interstate friends enjoying daytrips and heading to boozy lunches with friends and family has been all too much. It’s had me wondering if there is an end to this at all, because right now it well and truly is not in sight.
I thought I might try something different today though. Instead of focusing on this nostalgia that the never ending groundhog day is forcing us to feel, I want to try an exercise where in this piece, I focus on hope. If not to inspire this sensation within my readership, then maybe simply to just spark the flame within myself, because lord knows, I need some inspo right now..
As infinite as this current situation may feel, it will eventually come to end. There will be a change, just as everything changes in life. The inevitably of one chapter closing and another beginning represents the cycle of life. It may very well be a long way off or it may be in a few weeks but our isolation nightmare will end eventually. On that day we will be able to see our loved ones again, we will be able to indulge those specifically Melburnian cravings for a good coffee and avo on toast. We will once again return to being one of the most liveable cities in the world and our spirit and character will become so much emboldened due to the resilience we have had to build during this extremely difficult time.
I am now, just as much as I have been in the past, an extremely proud Melburnian. This city for me has represented the opportunity for myself and my family to build towards our dreams. It gave us a fresh start. It’s embraced my cultural background, just as it has many others and it’s celebrated the diversity of its people. The identity of being from Melbourne is just as much rooted in migrant stories as it is in anything else. Our city is one which celebrates it diversity and has long been attributed to being a cultural melting pot. Our mutual pride is what makes us who we are and we will overcome this current situation, together as Melburnians, just as we have many before it.
The human psyche is one which is as sensitive as it is strong. Our resilience, and the depth of this, is only really known when we are pushed to our limits. We are capable of things that are beyond our imagination; and we are capable of overcoming the societal and mental consequences that this pandemic is presenting us with. What I’ve come to realise is just how grateful I am in so many ways, for so many different things. The extended period in lockdown has forced me to stop and reassess everything. Its granted me an opportunity to see everything differently; if not begrudgingly.
This time around I’ve been much kinder to myself. I haven’t placed unwarranted expectations on myself or my productivity. I haven’t tried to overachieve or feel the pressure to always be doing something productive with my time. Paradoxically, I have struggled more than I did the first time around though still. I’ve felt mentally drained to the point where all I can do at the end of the day is stare into the TV screen, sipping wine; but maybe that’s all I have to do right now. Perhaps just getting through this is the thing to focus on. Maybe just waking up everyday and getting out of bed is the biggest achievement we can have. All the while continuing to remind ourselves that this too shall pass…
Sx
I blog for Change. 