Has any other time in history called for people to be so adaptable?
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The past two years have seen restrictions change from one hour to the next, borders shut, borders open, face masks on, face masks off.
The habits and routines of just about everyone throughout the world were torpedoed as the virus became rampant, and our lives have followed the evolution of this virus ever since.
Two years ago, I had never heard the term "social distancing". I had never worn a face mask.
Eighteen months ago, COVID-19 was a terrifying threat that had us wearing the skin off our hands with sanitiser.
A trip to the supermarket felt like chopping your way through the vines - taking on a quest to find food for the family.
A trip to the supermarket felt like chopping your way through the vines - taking on a quest to find food for the family.
The vision of mass graves in other countries and the terrible tales of so many final moments are memories that can never be forgotten.
We watched in horror as the world tried to "flatten the curve". We home-schooled, we ignored appointments, we Zoomed, we dyed our own hair, we cancelled our travel - then cancelled it again. We were separated from our family in other states. We got to know our immediate household in a whole different way.
Some didn't like what they discovered, Others never wanted to go back to life as we knew it. And then, the darkness lifted. There was a vaccine. We suddenly had to decide whether we were for, or vehemently against this vaccine, and we had to adapt to the stance of our family and friends.
Fault lines opened between those who believed and those who did not. We rejoiced as we left off the manic singing of Happy Birthday as we washed our hands and gave our extended family sneaky hugs. We went back to work and school. We adapted. It was almost as if nothing had ever happened.
And then, it came back. With a vengeance. Check in returned to NSW after only a few days, face masks were back on and in the midst of the Christmas and New Year's celebrations, numbers began to skyrocket.
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I know at least four people in my extended family who now have COVID-19. But this is not COVID-19 as we know it.
This is a brother or sister to that virus that had us spraying our shoes with antiseptic before we stepped inside.
This is still something to worry about, but not to lie awake at night fearing the great "what if". This is something to take precautions about, but that is unlikely to see you ending up in ICU. Providing you are vaccinated. But this change has not come at a cost.
It has come at the huge cost of a million smaller changes, where we have pivoted until we fell down dizzy. We have changed course and adapted, but we will continue to see the stress fractures for some time.
Welcome to 2022, where hopefully, we can see COVID-19 become a cousin to the flu and we can tend to the cracks in ourselves and the people we love, who have survived through something that has undoubtedly taken a toll.
We can't pretend that nothing has happened.
Marie Low is a freelance journalist based in Gunnedah, NSW.