However, I have noticed a drastic increase in social responsibility when it comes to visiting our elders after we have been in contact with so many people throughout the day.
Writing from the point of view of a Maltese immigrant currently living in Northern Spain (I am a young entrepreneur, psychologist and language specialist), it isn’t that easy to visit family and friends anymore.
At the start of the pandemic, Spain introduced a hefty €150 fee for a negative PCR certificate valid for travelling abroad, and seeing the huge drop in demand the airlines had to suspend various direct services.
In this regard I try to think positive and manage my expectations accordingly, because as they say, you will always be somewhat disappointed if you maintain unrealistically high expectations.
Bars and restaurants which are common hotspots during the weekends haven’t opened their doors to customers in a while, hairdressers notoriously known for being a meeting point for village gossips, and older people who used to attend mass or day centres regularly as one of their main points of socialising have had to adapt to this new reality.
Luckily in Malta we have a strong net of family support, because in front of so much change and uncertainty it is easy to feel down in the dumps. You just have to think positive and to know that it is ok not to be ok for some time!
Students who usually socialise with their classmates at school have been restricted to online teaching. On the other hand, teachers who had never taught online were suddenly forced to use a completely different teaching method.
This of course calls for the need to adapt to new systems on both sides to avoid any frustration these changes might have caused.
For those who ended up unemployed as a result of the pandemic, hope is the last to die. But even more important than that, is our ability to adapt and merge into new markets.
"This pandemic might have come as a surprise to everyone, but finding new ways to enjoy life, appreciating the things we still have and the people who are still around might be the key to reducing the anxiety that is caused by such an overwhelmingly complex crisis".