Who is Essential...You

There is no doubt that during this critical time, it has been absolutely appropriate to acknowledge the hard work done by so many wonderful people in the care industry, in the transport industry, the education industry, food and drink industry, and many more. Thank you to those who have been working tirelessly throughout these challenging times.

Thank you also to EVERYONE ELSE. Those who have adjusted your working habits to an office tucked away in the bedroom so that the children won’t be heard during a meeting. Those of you who have gone from multi-tasking projects at work to mega-tasking work as well as becoming teaching assistants, technical support, cook and cleaner, on top of being an emotional support to your newly-home-schooled children. Those of you who have had to endure losses in employment or faced difficult family circumstances, and yet you persevere to find your way to maintain normalcy, keep your family together and regain financial stability. Those of you whose family was your community and you have had to find new ways of getting together or even put them on pause. Those of you who were about to start a new path in university or a job or a relationship which may have been taken away, at least in the format you were familiar with. You may not be listed on a government website, but know that you are all essential.

In decades to come, when history reflects on this time of fear and confusion, a child will hear a story of how their grandfather lost his job, but stayed strong and determined to care for his children, one of whom is the mother of this child; she remembered how wonderful it was to spend time with her parents and how they celebrated together the return of normalcy with regular work and familiar special occasions, like a holiday abroad. 

In decades to come a young nursing student will be recalling in her first job interview that the reason that she chose to become a nurse is because her grandmother worked tirelessly to help care for poorly patients during this time. In decades to come, someone will open a new food delivery service focusing on people who struggle with new technologies, inspired by stories of her father who was out all-day delivering food all over the country, and yet always remembered to help out the elderly neighbour down the street who didn’t have internet and couldn’t get to the shop on her own. 

In decades to come a student in university will be inspired by a professor who had to put her studies on hold, but didn’t give up her dream in academia. In decades to come a group of friends will laugh at the ways they found to keep their friendship going without parties, pubs and restaurants.

In decades to come, it is your story – of adjusting to new realities, starting new businesses, supporting neighbours, finding new ways of being close to family and friends that were far away, finding new ways to make new friendships, smiling through the eyes so strangers will recognise warmth and kindness and persevering throughout this fearful time – that will bring the return of human compassion and the inspiration and aspiration of the younger generation to realise new ways to share that they care about their community.