20: Time

As someone who values time highly, it has always seemed like there is never enough of it. Enter, COVID-19. The “New normal”. A common thread in all seems to be that there is suddenly an abundance of time, at home, away from the “busy” of daily life- but with its own rhythms- some homeschooling, co-working/living environments, baking (now that toilet paper is back in the supermarkets, there seems to be a shortage of baking ingredients). 

There seem to be two very defined camps in assessing the situation and addressing how to approach this so-called “New Normal”. There is the camp of slow down, rest, relax; and the camp of speed up, do, create, hustle more. And then there is the emotional rollercoaster that transcends both camps, of which everyone seems to be on, in an ongoing loop  

Sydney is a city I’ve loved living in, despite the almost-breathless, endlessly busy nature of the city. This was incredibly clear to me upon returning from Germany, having experienced a dramatic slowing down during that time. There- I was running at the pace of bureaucracy. And yet, rather than rushing from uni to work while eating lunch madly on buses, I was able to just be a student. There were moments where one day felt like a week, a week filled with the activities of a month- where in Sydney, those activities would be extra shifts. And so, there were different versions of what “normal” looked like during this period.

new normal- admiring the morning sun on my monstera

I can’t say I’ve ever experienced such a dramatic slow-down as this (nor would anyone for that matter), and for a city that always seems to be busy, rushing, late- it’s especially apparent when it grinds to a halt like this. With full respect for the sadness, tragedy, and crippling effects of this pandemic- I am grateful to be able to write this from a country which seems (touchwood) to be responding better than most.

In this time, I’ve been able to work from home. It’s been so interesting to see how a Sharehouse copes with being a shared space for both living and labour- and it seems that 9:30am is peak morning-check-in-o’clock. But impressive amounts of tea and coffee consumption aside; it raises so many interesting questions about our homes and work. I’ve lost count of how many articles have crossed my radar highlighting all manner of changes, from how work will look, what remote work could become, how we will live in our homes, and how to return to cities with social distancing.

The most exciting have been the pop-up interventions in cities, from bike lanes, slowed speed limits, widened footpaths, extra pedestrian crossings. It’s been beautiful to see the way that a little bit more time is giving the inhabitants of a city exactly that- time. Time in their city, in the parks and public spaces. Time that normally would’ve been spent passing through blindly, in a commute, shuttling children to extra-curricular activities, in traffic, going to extra meetings. It’s given me time to sit in my garden at lunch and walk after work nearly every day, moments I’m cherishing.

morning sunflowers

And so, despite the tragedy of this pandemic (which is by no means over), these beautiful, human moments give me the hope that when we’re allowed back- it isn’t back to the same “normal”, but creating a new world where work is actually more flexible, where there is time outside, with family, with friends. Where there is more patience and gratitude- having not noticed the beautiful things beforehand.

And in this downtime, there is time for creating. More to come on that note.

Until next time!
AP