Whether you have been working from home or have been temporarily laid off due to the coronavirus outbreak, the state of emergency lockdown has forced everyone to spend more time at home.
A lack of social interaction for a long time can make people feel lonely, and staying in the same room with family members every day can sometimes even provoke conflict.
It’s been more than a month since Richmond Hill resident Joy Qu self-isolated at home with her family, including her two young children. She went from “not wanting the kids to go to school” to “would love the kids to go back to school immediately.”
“All schools and activities have been cancelled – the kids are staying at home and taking online courses, but they are so easily distracted and always make a huge mess of the house.”
To control her anger and deal with her emotions, Qu took part in some online programs on the COVID-19 Platform, founded by the Chinese Volunteer Association in Canada.
“I have to keep myself busy, otherwise I have to watch the two kids fighting and yelling all day long,” Qu said. She has enrolled in a number of free classes, such as learning French, tai chi and so on. "I am a total beginner – the courses all start from the basics."
The COVID-19 Platform offers a lot of projects to participate in, some of which are live Zoom lectures and some of which are interactive teaching in WeChat groups. Everything is organized by volunteers and taught by voluntary teachers, the website reads.
Qu said that French is something she always wanted to learn but never had the time to, and tai chi is a martial art that she could practice at home. “When I am occupied, I will let go (of) the trivial things.”
Lin Wei, from Aurora, is in his 70s; he is involved in the Cantonese learning project provided by the COVID-19 Platform. He also does some volunteer work and helps to organize some online activities.
Wei joined a party called “self-entertainment online gathering on Zoom” on May 2. As an audience member, he enjoyed the performances of singing, playing and reciting put on by ordinary people from all over Canada. The performances may not have been professional, but Wei thinks they were very interesting.
Isolated at home, Wei and his wife, both retired, had nothing to do. The couple made a lot of friends through the platform; it helped them overcome boredom and loneliness during the outbreak.
A webinar hosted by spiritual leader Yukun Xu was held through the platform on May 5.
Xu is a 73-year-old farmer from Henan Province in China. He began cycling in the U.S. and Canada on April 1 last year. He advocated the concepts of environmental protection and a low-carbon life through "Yukun Xu’s Cycling Diary in North America."
Within four months, Xu rode a bike from Los Angeles to New York, then from New York to Montreal and Ottawa, and arrived in Toronto on July 19, 2019.
As a peer, Wei is encouraged by Xu’s spirit. When facing the pandemic, physical health is important, but mental strength is even more essential. Wei said that what he found most useful from this webinar is the idea that people shouldn’t be defeated by unknown difficulties.
The Chinese Volunteer Association in Canada was established in October 2015. President Guanglei Li said that the organization is registered in Montreal, but it aims to serve all Chinese people and Canadians across the country.
With the outbreak of coronavirus coming so suddenly and so rapidly, the purpose of the COVID-19 Platform is to enhance the awareness of self-isolation, to learn about pandemic prevention and to share experiences, care and love with each other.
The state of emergency has been extended in various provinces, and the number of people participating in activities launched by the COVID-19 Platform is also increasing.
“We have language classes, such as French, Spanish, Japanese, Mandarin, Cantonese and English,” Li said, as well as physical fitness classes such as tai chi and martial arts. Most of the participants are Chinese-Canadians.
In addition, to facilitate better communication for the elderly, the platform has set up a special technology learning group to help them use different electronic devices.
The COVID-19 Platform arose in response to the coronavirus pandemic, with the purpose of helping people better spend their time during isolation. It has attracted thousands of people since its launch.
Li said the whole team is made up of a group of warm-hearted volunteers. "As long as everyone is disciplined and isolated at home, we are making our own contribution toward the victory over the pandemic."
— Scarlett Liu is a journalist working under the Government of Canada funded Local Journalism Initiative for Torstar Community Brands, York Region.
