Zizi Sparks: Key takeaways from the Covid-19 lockdown

Zoom gatherings have become part of social and working lives.

COMMENT

With more details on just what alert level 2 will look like now revealed and an announcement on when we'll get there expected on Monday, there is finally a light at the end of the tunnel.

Here are three lessons from our time at levels 3 and 4, which I hope can be remembered as we move to a new normal.

1. Physical distancing is not social distancing.

People young and old were forced to find new ways to connect as a result of lockdown.

We heard countless stories. The charities who still found ways to fundraise, the event organiser connecting people even when they were apart.

Then were the things that didn't make the news. The everyday parents connecting with children over video calls and messages, perhaps a little more frequently than before.

The friends on other sides of the world catching up to discuss what life in lockdown was like for them.

Zoom, a programme some hadn't even heard of has now become synonymous with the lockdown.

Just because many people are returning to work, it doesn't mean we should cut off the connections we've worked hard to maintain and reignite in lockdown levels 3 and 4.

2. You actually don't have to go to work when you're sick.

I'm guilty of it, we all are. Kiwis are hard workers and we don't want to let people down. So we go to work even when we're sick.

"It's just a headache, just a cold, I just have a few things to do, I had to come to work."

The excuses flow. Grab the tissues.

As Covid-19 became a threat, workplaces became stricter about not working when sick. Even our own Prime Minister said not to go to work with even the slightest sniffle.

The project you are working on will be there the next day, your workmates will manage. In fact, they'll appreciate you keeping those germs at home, whatever they may be.

3. There is always good in bad

The sudden move to a strict lockdown ripped plans apart but the good shone through as people found innovative ways to keep life moving.

There was the unprecedented marking of Anzac Day.

There was the dad who made his daughter's birthday special by recreating a McDonald's drive through in lieu of the real thing, the wedding anniversary in lockdown and the couple who still found a way to say 'I do'.

Then there were the crazy creations. The competitive swimmers training from home and a boredom buster involving a digger and a wakeboard.

Even at a time when Covid-19 was sweeping across the world, there was still a huge amount of joy, innovation and good. Make sure we remember is as we come out the other end.

• Covid19.govt.nz: The Government's official Covid-19 advisory website