Living through COVID-19: "I think a lot of people are expecting life to be different after...but it will go back to normal surprisingly quickly."

Last March, as the pandemic whipped across the world, many of you started writing to us about what you were experiencing. Hello Monday's listeners span the globe, and you sent thoughts and voice memos from every corner of the world. It was a confusing time—a moment when COVID was just loosening its grip on some cities in Asia even as it hadn't even taken root in many United States cities. We stitched your thoughts and interviews into an episode. The show featured four guests, all of whom shared powerful thoughts on connection:

Becky Ances, a teacher in Xiamen, China: Becky had been living in lockdown for many months already, and she shared: "There is an unexpected sense of community that, you know, we can do this, we can get through it and we can go back to our lives."

Emily Stratton, a teacher in Fargo, ND: Emily taught English lessons to young children in China who weren't able to attend school in person, and she remembered saying to them: "I'm probably the only person outside of your family you're going to talk to today. So we're going to enjoy this if this is going to be fun."

Manny Yekutiel, a cafe owner in San Francisco: Manny was trying to figure out how to take a restaurant and public space digital, and he said: "The way I see my myself and my position right now in the community and with the space that I have is also to model good behavior in terms of what I'm saying, how I'm acting, and what I'm doing. This virus is serious and should be taken seriously. And also we have to be aware of our emotional reaction to it as well."

Kate Burson, an entrepreneur in Milan, Italy: Kate was on tight lockdown, and grateful to have her dog, who needed walks: "Fortunately dogs, at least, do not transmit the disease to humans. They get to play a lot and all the owners, we stand far apart. But we talk to each other and it's kind of a nice...a very human authentic moment to share with each other."

So here we are, at the end of the year. I don't know that any of us would have guessed last March that we'd still be grappling with COVID-19. As 2020 winds down, my colleague Michaela Greer got in touch with our guests to see what had changed. The short answer: So Much. If it's been a while, you might want to listen to the original episode again. Then please enjoy this special bonus follow-up. All of us here at Hello Monday wish all of you a happy, healthy holiday season. As listener Lauren Maffeo said when she wrote to us last week, "Stay positive and test negative!"

And, as always: write to us with your reactions to the episode. You can always reach us at [email protected], or post about your own experiences this year using the hashtag #HelloMonday. We love hearing from you!

Our new follow-up episode:

From March, our show about staying connected in a time of coronavirus:

From February, our original listener episode on the quarantine:

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