Gratitude in the Time of COVID

By Lauren Lee-Lewis

It would be easy to look back on 2020 as a year of loss — loss of life, loss of jobs, loss of “normalcy” and loss of opportunity. When we came home Friday, March 13, 2020, no one thought we would still be in the grip of a pandemic a year later.

I remember CIS making contingency plans for a two-week work-from-home situation and all of the uncertainty that even that short amount of time brought: Can we take equipment home? Will the university eventually implement a long-term work-from-home strategy? What do we do if someone gets sick? Will students have to return home from abroad? The list goes on and on. It was (and remains) easy to get lost in a sea of “what if” and to question when this will end. But what if we were to reframe this sense of loss and overwhelming uncertainty by instead asking: What have we gained?

Of course, we can and should hold 2020 up to the mirror for what it was: difficult and painful in ways I think we still have not fully realized. The tragedy of so much pain will not easily be forgotten. We grieve collectively for all that has been lost. Beyond the grief and pain, though, is an opportunity to remember this as a time when the world slowed down and we were able to take stock of our lives in ways we never had before.

When I look for opportunities to be grateful in this situation, this is what I see: I have had more time with my family than ever before. My son is thriving in virtual second grade with me and his dad as teachers. My pets are thrilled to have someone at home every day. I have always wanted to work from home, and it is as perfect a fit for me as anything I have ever encountered. While there is an immense amount of stress in the outside world — worrying about COVID, keeping up with vaccine information, etc. — there is a new sense of understanding and peace here at home.

Lauren Lee-Lewis is assistant director of financial operations in the College of International Studies.