What we can expect in a post pandemic world.
Almost every conversation and encounter I have with people leads to one topic: life before the pandemic hit. You know, back when we could hang out with 12 people at once. Back when movie theaters were open. Back when a large sum of students went to school on campus and before anyone knew Zoom was even a thing.
But that life is over now. Nowadays, we live in a world of masks, social distancing, lockdowns and curfews. A new disease has spread throughout the world, and vaccinations have only begun to be administered over the last few months.
However, we’re currently closer to the end of this pandemic than we are to the beginning. Instead of looking back, we need to look ahead at what life will be like when we’re finally allowed to establish a new normal.
Here’s what life would look like in my hypothetical post-pandemic world:
No one’s morning routine would change much. You wake up, brush your teeth, do your hair and take care of your overall hygiene. I’d be alarmed if this wasn’t your norm before or during the pandemic. It’s pretty important.
You leave wherever you’re staying at and head to either school or work. Once you get to the door of a classroom, restaurant, office or any other public area, your temperature is checked and you must put hand sanitizer on. Yes, this would still be a thing. At the very least, there would still be a hand sanitizer dispenser. Getting your temperature checked might only be in a select few places, like hospitals.
Once we’re inside public venues, however, we’ll be alright. Lines in stores won’t be six feet apart. Restaurants will have a full house with tables not completely spread out. It’ll be pretty similar to how it was before the pandemic.
In fact, everything in the world will be pretty normal. Despite there being a serious lack of small businesses due to the pandemic forcing them to close their doors, not much will be different. The Target or Baskin Robbins a few blocks away? Those will still be there, and this time you can wait in line behind someone without wearing a mask.
It’s hard to determine the role masks will play post-pandemic. Wearing a mask, double mask or face shield has become normal not just in our society, but around the world. I wouldn’t be surprised if people bring their masks in public out of habit when this pandemic is over despite them not being mandatory.
But masks will still have a role to play. With a virus that’s spread just by breathing in the vicinity of someone, a mask will remain useful for everyone. However, they won’t be mandatory. They will only be highly encouraged to wear when you are sick, similar to how China has incorporated masks into their society. This, of course, would be for prevention purposes.
Masks would also be required for travel, which would have a few extra steps in the future. The bombing of the World Trade Center led to TSA checks becoming mandatory in airports. Now, a COVID-19 vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test could be required before traveling elsewhere. With all the variants and mutations of the virus, the last thing we need is for those to continue spreading throughout the entire world.
Just to be safe, masks would be required on planes. Plane flights typically have all types of people from around the world going to a single spot. It would make sense to have some sort of face covering in an attempt to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
The idea may seem foolish, but there are so many people who travel the world for different reasons. A single college campus, like Azusa Pacific, could hold thousands of students from hundreds of different towns and multiple countries. Masks would definitely be the right call.
But what about a 14-day quarantine? Would travelers still need to isolate themselves for two weeks to make sure they’re healthy? It’s unlikely. Quarantine would still be a thing, but only for people who contract COVID-19, regardless if they’ve traveled or not. This way, safe and healthy citizens can enjoy the luxury of partaking in activities in a normal manner.
When I say “normal,” I mean a new normal in society. A normal that involves adapting to the impact COVID-19 has had in our lives. I don’t mean things will go back to the way they were before the pandemic. That time has passed. It’s time we look past the past and into the future.