As COVID-19 cases start to dwindle across Orange County, and facilities begin to open up for the public across the nation, we can’t help but wonder, what will our lives be like once the pandemic is over?

Obviously, we all have been through an insanely chaotic year as we have had to adapt to this new reality created by COVID-19. When you think about it, a year can be a fairly long time for some of us ー it’s now practically second nature for me to bring a facial covering with me everywhere I go, and I basically can’t go without applying hand sanitizer every 5 minutes. Therefore, since most of us have established our own new habits and routines due to the pandemic, there are bound to be some differences in our everyday lives after COVID-19.

Personally, I think one of the major differences between the pre-COVID-19 era (PCE) and the after COVID-19 era (ACE) is how people will be going to work. For most individuals working full-time careers before COVID-19 hit, they had to wake up before the sun rose to go to their workplace at eight o’clock in the morning. From there, they worked up until the sun began to set and had to drive all the way back home in busy traffic. Since working remotely has become apparent due to COVID-19, most people that had to physically go to work are now working from home. Although it was an interesting change at first, after a year of working from home, most employees might not want to go back to attending their workplace every day once COVID-19 becomes a thing in the past. Even more so, some places of work might even permanently change how they handle their meetings. Kyndal Prahl (12) is certain that “there will be more options for in-person and online meetings and events.”

If my predictions are correct and most people will be able to conduct their careers from the comfort of their living room, this could definitely impact what life would be like at home. If working from home becomes more common, parents will be able to stay home with their children more often. This will allow the parent to be able to spend more time with their kid, rather than wasting their time behind a desk working from nine to five. As a result, the relationship between parents and their kids could, overall, improve since they have more opportunities to spend quality time together. 

Although it might not be much of a change, there may be some slight positive changes in ACE that did not exist PCE. Nevertheless, we are all excited for life to finally go back to normal once COVID-19 finally becomes one for the history books.