| Maher, Jane |
Beauty and the Covid Beast (PDF, 115.0 KB) |
Journal 31 December 2022 |
beauty, creativity, health, internet, isolation, love, relationship, role, spontaneity, systems theory, vulnerability |
In this moment from ‘Beautiful World Where Are You’, Sally Rooney’s characters experience reunification, they embrace, after separation, conflict, breakdown and heart break. Beauty blossoms in their embrace. Embracing has been something that the Covid 19 Pandemic required us to curtail. Hugging, kissing, touching, proximity, gathering, all required more awareness, more planning; often constraint. At times the number of minutes we spent out of home were closely clocked, the distance from home and what we could go out for were prescribed. Likewise who we could be with. Mandated lockdowns, curfews, border closures, quarantining, masks, covid safety plans; all new ways of living imposed to mitigate a health crisis that might otherwise push through the pre-existing cracks and bring on total social collapse. In this context our priorities were naturally reviewed. Where do we find beauty amongst the unwelcome messes, fears, sorrows, losses; the burdens that discriminate unfairly. There have also been new possibilities. |
4 |
2022-12 |
