The Silver Linings of 2020

How did you design your way through pandemic life, with intention, goodwill, imagination, creativity and optimism? (even when you weren't feeling up to it!)

By Michela O'Connor Abrams, founder of MOCA+

It did not take long for me to move from, “Where in the hell is this pandemic taking us?” to “We must not waste the opportunity to learn.” Whether it is a survival tool or the wisdom of age, or both, I’ve always tried to focus on the ways in which adversity, trauma and even tragedy can be an opportunity for growth. (In fact...MOCA + is now offering a workshop on May 24th on this very topic, Designing Our Way Through Crisis) I dare say the pandemic was ripe for the picking! It created so many “shouldn’ts”, “cant’s, and wont’s. I shouldn’t go outside without a mask. I can’t hug my mom. I won’t travel on a plane. If you defied any of these pandemic rules the penalty could be death! There was no mistaking that consequence for anyone - even those who continued to live in suspended disbelief.

The pause made us look inward and take stock of our personal priorities, as much as it did remind us of our collective role on earth.