I don’t really know when or how it happened, but my safety cocoon has now been activated. Right now, I don’t want to see more news, more corona statistics, or more quarantine advice. No new exciting films or this cool series on Netflix: corona has added enough excitement in my life. 

What I do want is a remote control to turn off the world for a while. Or at least pause it. That’s what corona has done with our old world, put it on pause. Or shut it down completely? The future will show which. I wonder how this period will be called in the history books. We have the Great Depression. Maybe the Big Pause? The time when everything stopped all over the world, more or less.

What is clear already, I think, is that this is a marathon. We’re in for the long haul. It’ll take us some time to get through the unknown and the scary, and one of the most important things is mental health. It’s no secret that isolation and worry eventually will take its toll on the healthiest person. So, we have to find a way to get us through this long trial … should we call it the great unknown, maybe? 

People hoard food and toilet paper (toilet paper? TOILET PAPER? really?), but what will carry us safely to the other side is not full pantries, but hope and courage, confidence and perseverance, optimism and tenacity. And a lot of patience. We simply need mental fitness. 

Today’s challenges are borne by hope. We must believe that there will be a life after corona, a good life, although it may look different than today. The most loving gift you can give your loved ones is hope, the best medicine in corona times – until a vaccine is available. 

As Alexandre Dumas said: All human wisdom is summed up in two words; wait and hope. 

Endurance is a marathon of hope.

So, stay safe. Stay healthy. Stay calm and soldier on. And don’t forget to laugh. 

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