A deserted Greenwich Avenue during the pandemic.
Before March 2020 our daily lives were in constant motion. Traveling, eating at a restaurant, shopping, and hosting parties were things everyone did. Now all of these things are not allowed or are limited. Now parties have less than ten people, restaurants are outside only, shopping is done mostly online, and traveling is almost unheard of. Since the pandemic began the world has slowed down.
I spent some time in the last few weeks driving around in search of the impact of COVID-19. And I can tell you I was not disappointed. From the empty shelves at grocery stores to the almost empty Greenwich Avenue, the community felt very different. Lines and security guards were now all over grocery stores. I had to watch which direction I went in as arrows marked the floors. People wearing masks, shields, and gloves carefully maneuvered around each other, trying their best to keep six feet apart. It was like stepping into a horror movie. The shelves in the cleaning and paper department were nearly empty and signs saying “1 item per customer” were taped to every shelf. If an outsider saw this happening, as the human race was halting all daily activities and sheltering in their homes, they would have thought the planet had turned into a ghost town.
Of course people are still on the roads and go to grocery stores, but the feeling of only that happening was something out of a nightmare. None of us saw this coming, in fact most of us woke up to the stay at home order one morning and never knew it could get this serious. I remember I had plans to see friends for lunch the weekend we were told to stay home. About two weeks before the stay at home order I was sitting at a restaurant with my best friend having lunch and later that night I ate dinner at a restaurant with my mom. That was just how life was like then. Four days before the stay at home order I was eating at my favorite restaurant with my dad. How fast things changed in such little time was shocking.
Although it feels like the human race has stopped altogether, other things such as the planet and animals have benefited from the new “ghost town.” In Italy the water in the canals has finally turned clear again revealing fish and even dolphins swimming through the water. With less driving as people are not going to work or school means less carbon dioxide emissions. Animals have the freedom to wander without the fear of human interference. Many towns and even cities have seen herds of sheep, goats, or other animals crowding main streets due to the lack of cars driving in the area. I’ve read many stories on how people are happy that wildlife can bounce back so fast from just a few months with little human activity. However, when things begin to start up again this could end up being dangerous for the animals as they could potentially become endangered if they continue to wander in streets or cities.
The ghost town or really ghost planet has allowed wildlife to flourish and the planet to heal. It feels unusual and strange to us, but in the long run, staying home helps both humans, animals, and the planet. This is not something that will last forever, but instead something that will fix a serious and deadly situation. Eventually the animals will have to be cautious again and the canals will become dirty, but for now it is nice to know that nature can heal. The pandemic has turned our communities into ghost towns and has greatly changed our daily lives into an unusual situation, but we must remember by staying home we are saving lives.