Our new normal...

Typically at 9 pm on a Saturday night I'd still be at home getting ready to go out with friends. It feels like it's been forever since I've danced all night and forgot about life for a few hours when in all reality it's been a month and nine days, but it's also been a month and nine days since I've been able to spend time with some of the people I love most.

My new normal is spending 24/7 within 4 walls and a phone to replace physical contact. It's watching the news hoping that next month will somehow be better. It's worrying about friends and family who are considered essential workers and my friends who rely on physically being around people so their mental health doesn't deteriorate as quickly as it normally would be. Trying to keep myself busy to distract myself from the depression and anxiety-provoking life that has become our new normal.

I went out on a Saturday night at 9 pm to get groceries and instead of seeing people dressed up for a night out or coming or going to work, I saw tired eyes and faces covered by masks, hands rubbed raw from constantly washing them and using hand sanitizer or covered with latex gloves. The streets no longer echo children's laughter anymore, instead, they're crowded with soft cries of missing friends and family, unemployed parents struggling to house and feed their children, 8th graders and high school seniors missing out on school functions and graduation celebrations, and people praying for a better and different tomorrow knowing that nothing will ever be the same.