COVID-19: Our New Reality

How this pandemic has changed all of our lives.

The Start of a Pandemic
A sign hangs on Barnes and Nobles front doors ever since the first week of quarantine.

Earlier this year a virus had appeared in Wuhan, China. As time went on it traveled to other countries, and fast. As the numbers of cases grew the world went into a panic. Everywhere shut down. Some faster than others and some had stricter rules. In the United States there was a shelter in place quickly called and many stores closed. Signs like this appeared in all of their windows soon after.

Panic
A 20 person line forms at the bank, ending in the parking lot.

In the El Cerrito Plaza, stores are packed. Or have made a ten person line of people just trying to get in. Everyone stocks up on things they probably don’t even need. Toilet paper, hand sanitizers and soaps, cleaning products, and baking supplies are completely bought out. The shelves stay empty as restrictions are put on the purchasing of these items. Even though there are limits, the shelves stay empty and people resort to homemade hand sanitizers.

Worry
My grandma and I social distancing, her inside her house, me outside.

My grandma is one of the many people at higher risk to catch the virus. She is immune compromised and over the age of 70, the age limit for going into hospitals for covid treatment. We try to keep her and my other 3 grandparents as safe as possible. We shop for them and social distance when we see them.

Safety
A disposable mask, gloves, and biohazard bag found thrown on the floor.

During this pandemic, the best thing you can do is try to be safe. The best things to do this are masks and gloves when going anywhere outside of home. But are you really being safe by throwing your used trash on the ground that could be contaminated?

You could potentially be putting other humans or animals at risk. These are just a few I’ve seen during my walks. The worst part is, no one can try tohelp by picking it up without risking their own safety.

Difference
A father and son playing at a pond.

And a woman reading and sipping tea with her dog on her porch.

During this time most people have been sent home, doing work and school online or doing nothing at all. This leaves everyone with a lot of time and yearning to go outside. The times I’ve been out I’ve seen multiple people doing things you wouldn’t usually see all the time. For example, I’ve seen more people playing with their kids at parks or going on walks with them. It seems to have brought a lot of families together.

Grads
My cousin graduating at a mock ceremony my family made over zoom.

Along with the growing numbers of cases, most states have locked down. This caused- among other thingsschools to shut down. A huge part of highschool is of course, graduating. And it was on most seniors minds as the school closure got longer and longer. When school finally announced that they would not be re-opening and graduation would be discussed, our friends and family planned a zoom. Though there was a drive-through ceremony, it would not be the same. The graduation took place last week.

Frontline health workers during the Covid-19 pandemic.

An essential worker delivering packages.

Essential Workers
Although I could not get any images of essential workers in my area, I found images of the most important people around the world. These people continued work through this entire pandemic even in the worst of times. We need them. What would we do without the people that take care of us when we are on the edge of death? What would we do without the people who help us buy things we need to survive? For those reasons, we should always say please and thank you and never make it harder for them when we come into contact.

Bibliography
This is the bibliography (I think) for the images I used.