Visual acuity is a static measurement of viewing stationary letters or numbers on a chart to establish the accuracy of eyesight …

In a year, five years or even ten years, what will 2020 Vision mean? Will we look back on this year and say “yes, hindsight really is 2020”? Will it have been a pivotal year when our lives changed with remarkable speed and we never went back to the old normal? A numerically attractive year with an incredible legacy?

Looking back, when the Taoiseach addressed the nation on St Patrick’s Day, we were told that this would be a national holiday like no other. We would have to start living our lives very differently to the way we had before, for an undefined period of time to come. Although we had seen the world change all around us, and knew that we were not insulated from the spread of this virus, the new rules and recommendations from government seemed almost apocalyptic. It was like watching a futuristic movie which you know isn’t real but you still get scared. But this wasn’t a movie, this was real life and this was the way it was going to be, the way it has to be.

Some of those new practices have somehow seamlessly blended into how we now live. A quick run into the supermarket has become an almost military operation: timing is important, buying only what is on the list, get in and get out as quickly as possible, no browsing and absolutely no stockpiling. A distant cheery hello and a wave when you meet someone you know has replaced a hug and a chat: “See you on the other side!” Local shopkeepers know everyone’s name, community spirit (always a great Irish tradition) has become even stronger. Stepping onto the road to allow a mum, dad, a six-year old on a bicycle (with stabilisers), a four-year-old on a scooter and maybe a skittish new puppy on a lead, to keep going on the path, is seen as a kind gesture and is acknowledged with a thank you or wave.

Moving away or not stopping to chat doesn’t come naturally to us, even with strangers. A stranger is just a friend we haven’t met before! We are talkers, chatters, we can find someone or something in common with everyone we meet. Now we have to do it at a distance but we are not being rude, we are being considerate. Are face masks/coverings the new fashion accessory? We smile with our eyes so all is good!

We have all found new vocabulary: social distancing, the R number, furlough, self-isolating, quarantining, pandemic, epicentre, community transmission, contact tracing, flattening the curve, even hydroxychloroquine, and that comforting word – cocooning. It sounds so warm and safe. Each one of us has become an expert on the latest statistics and facts!

We have discovered new sayings: stay safe and well; stay safe, sane and well; fanacht sa bhaile; lonraigh do sholas and my absolute favourite Ni Neart go Cur le Cheile – There is no Strength Without Unity.

As we enter our Brave New World, which even Aldous Huxley might not have imagined, where WFH (working from home) is the new black, going out for even a short walk every day is vitally important for physical and mental wellbeing, where planning the shopping trip or calling to check on isolated or cocooning neighbours is part and parcel of the day. Calling into a church to absorb the peace and calm for a precious few minutes is revitalising before re-joining the rat race which has now become more of a sloth walk! Zoom calls where everyone makes an effort with hair, make-up and clothes but lurking under the desk are the pyjama bottoms and fluffy slippers. No one will know unless you tell them! Zoom and Kahoot friends and family quiz nights have become the social highlight of the week with intellectual and competitive family members showcasing their superior knowledge with the rest of us mere mortals getting the odd question correct but just enjoying seeing everyone and have a good old catch-up! Ah, what I wouldn’t give for a 2019-version hug! I’ve missed my normal people but loved Normal People – isolated watching is recommended and could save some blushes!

For a huge number of people, lives took on a new urgency; new challenges both personal and financial; new everything. Our frontline doctors, nurses and healthcare workers in hospitals, nursing homes, pharmacies, medical practices and in the community can never be lauded or thanked enough. Some have seen situations and circumstances reminiscent of wartime. What they deal with on a day to day basis is beyond belief.

And behind the frontline HCW are those in government offices, the broadcasters on TV and radio, the postmen and women, the Gardaí, our waste collectors, our local shops, hotels, restaurants and coffee shops, the butchers, the bakers, all working under new safety regulations and adapting their workplaces to ensure their own protection and that of their colleagues and customers.

We can’t forget the unsung heroes: the mums and dads who are at home with their children negotiating their way through the unknown challenges of home-schooling, finding new arts and crafts, baking, nature walks but primarily keeping everyone as safe as possible.

Our children also need huge praise for their understanding way beyond their young years of the necessity of staying at home, of hygiene and social distancing, rules which are alien to how normal life should be for them. With the easing of restrictions, more shops, places of work and leisure activities begin to return. The joy of being able to hit a ball down the fairway has never seemed so good; that very special sound of a tennis ball being hit across a net is pure music! There is a renewed pleasure in doing the things we totally took for granted. Baking banana bread without bananas or is that just baking bread? Does it matter?!

Unbeknownst to us there was an unexpected twist in the timing of the 2020 general election. Held a few weeks earlier could have meant new people in new jobs with little or no experience in government and facing into this unprecedented and unchartered territory. What is a Herculean task for our current government could have been an impossible mountain for the new kids on the block. Whatever your politics or party loyalty, we owe a huge debt of gratitude to those who are leading us through this: Leo, the two Simons, Paschal, Tony H, Paul Reid, Paddy Mallon, the no-nonsense Sam McConkey, the straight-talking Luke O’Neill, the endless list of virologists, immunologists and advisors and the legions of people doing Trojan work around them.

Whatever group of politicians is assembled to form the next coalition government must work together like never before – partners with the same end goal in mind. They need to put their differences firmly behind them and lead us into this new world with strength and unity – Ni Neart go Cur Le Cheile.

Have you always wanted to be a published writer? If so, we’d dearly love to hear from you. We are accepting submissions for a new online series called A Reader Writes. Write a piece – journalistic report, essay-style or reflection – on your experience of the last eight weeks, between 600 and 1200 words, email it to digital@thegloss.ie and Editor Sarah McDonnell and team will consider it for publication online in the coming weeks. We are looking for original voices – funny, quirky, thoughtful and thought-provoking. We can’t offer a fee but we look forward to making a connection with writers and would-be writers … who knows where it could lead?