A Sense of Community

Lately I have seen so much compassion and empathy in people, that it has sparked a new feeling of belonging to our community and to human beings in general.

When the pandemic was declared in March, like everyone else, I was thinking of my survival and hit the grocery store to fill my cart with food that would last me weeks (no I didn’t think about toilet paper, it was mostly food for me, I like to eat). Then I waited for someone to come save the day, i.e. make a vaccine, treat us, make sure we don’t run out of food, keep running the basic amenities, etc. We were all hopeful that this would end in a couple of weeks, but that didn't happen. Being locked down inside the house for days made me realize how much I craved human connection and social interaction. Seeing the front line workers battling to save lives or keep basic services running so that we could continue to function as a society made me feel a little low about myself. I needed to contribute somehow too.

Luckily, I received a message from a friend about a group of women who were gathering volunteers to sew and make reusable cotton face masks and hospital gowns for hospitals, senior care homes and community members, since there was an acute shortage of PPE in the early days of the pandemic.

I took this opportunity and for the next 6-8 weeks, I spent hours every day sewing masks and hospital gowns. The wonderful people in the group motivated me and this tiny contribution brought me contentment, despite the times. What I did was not even close to what the essential service workers were doing every day, however, I was glad that I could help in providing protection to them as they continued to help us.

I now see people everywhere doing small acts of kindness. A neighbour has an open shelf stocked with food items outside her home for anyone to help themselves, groups are running free food delivery services for seniors and sick individuals, a friend on the west coast has started running a sandwich drive every Sunday for the homeless. The list goes on. A friend mentioned to me that her daughter told her that she was proud of her for doing this, whereas their relationship in the past had been very strained. While we may have the social interaction we did before March, these small acts of kindness are still bringing our community together in another way. We know that we are here for each other.

I hope this pandemic ends soon, however, I also hope that these acts of kindness towards our community continue beyond this crisis.

Stay safe everyone!