Let's face it, for many of us, life had risen to an unrelenting, inhumane rat race, and it wasn't good for anyone. Then the pandemic struck and forced us to slow down. That wasn't so bad. And although some bigwigs, with lots of money, continue to relay messages of regret that we're not working at breakneck speed, I think that's simply because we were all running on the hamster wheel elevating their wealth and privilege much more than our own resources for happy, fulfilled living.
So what do we do about this? How can we notice the positive effects of pandemic life, and keep those as part of our life equations? What can we do to get off the relentless treadmills, slow down, and have a more reasonable pace of life?
Since I retired due to COVID threat, I have taken a giant leap from the incredible rat race that was my life. I was literally working around the clock. I liked my work, but now that I've slowed down, I am begining to notice the the advantages of living at a more reasonable pace.
First, I think that every organization has to consider their expectations, and do an auditing of who is working too much. I will tell you that most classroom teachers have inhumane expectations, and most are working too much. It's not good for their health, their happiness, their career advancement, or what they can do for children. They need more reasonable expectations.
I will also tell you that most parents are working too hard. The expectations to sign your children up for too many activities, pay for too much day care, and work a lot too is simply not good for family life--we need to change that by making expectations for parents more reasonable and supports more helpful. Daycare costs in most places are simply off the charts, and work expectations are too great too. We can make change here.
Then, we need to re-look at our expectations for life in America across the board. What activities, shops, infrastructure, environments serve us best. In many neighborhoods, there are few accessible gathering spaces, grocery stores, libraries, schools, health centers and other helpful resources close by. In too many ways, we are reliant on cars and roads, rather than well designed communities that offer resources within walking distance. We also simply do not have enough public transportation which leads to greater pollution and less accessibility to needed and desired locations by large groups of the population including young people, the elderly, and others without automobiles. We have to change that.
We need to look at the kinds of activities and events we foster too--some old time practices are not healthy enough, inclusive enough, accessible, or representative of life-enriching themes or motives. And, we have to consider who is taking the lion's share of our time and money. In some cases, I'd say that we are propping up a few rather than the many, and we can do a better job investing in events and activities that elevate lots of people's happiness and positive endeavor. For example, in my community, they recently built a bike trail--people of all ages congregate there all the time to walk, bike, push strollers, and have picnics. It's a terrific resource for the entire community.
So I say, in this pandemic time, let's use our added time at home to rethink our communities in ways that say farewell to the rat race--lifeways that embrace more enriching, better living for all. Do you agree?