The Novelty Doesn’t Wear Off

At a certain point, we all tend to become accustomed to even the most radical changes in our life. The novelty wears off and we have “adjusted.”

Usually.

I don’t know about you, but in my experience of 2020, the novelty doesn’t wear off. Perhaps it’s because the novelty of the COVID-19 has led to a near-constant evolution in our understanding of the right behaviors. Perhaps it’s because the challenges we’ve faced in 2020 have constantly arrived from new directions.

As we enter October, I would, in any other year, have developed a pretty steady weekly pattern that no longer felt novel. It would feel well-worn, actually.

But this year, with new students quarantined every day from classes, and new forms of learning that change from week to week, and new ways of teaching that requires constant attention and growth as an educator, this year the novelty doesn’t wear off.

I mean, I hope it does eventually. I pray we find patterns that are durable, solutions that solve problems, and a way of moving forward that doesn’t feel untenable in the long term. I want to stop saying “What are we doing here?” every week and start saying, “This is just like last week.” Boy does that sound nice, right about now.