Comment: Community spirit is the silver lining we’ve been hoping for

In these days of unprecedented uncertainty, we’re all seeking a silver lining to balance out the bad stuff.

And while no amount of reconnecting with our children or taking enforced time out from our usually chaotic schedules will ever make up for the loss of lives and livelihoods, it does offer up a bit of the positivity we’ve been longing for.

Because, amid the Covid-related doom and gloom, there’s been a growing focus on the good that has come out of this mostly horrible situation and the simple pleasures it’s enabled us to appreciate.

The most obvious is the sense of community we’ve managed to foster, with many neighbours getting to know each other – mostly in a virtual sense – for the first time.

We haven’t lived on our road for long, but now feel very much a part of the community thanks to the WhatsApp group set up by a thoughtful neighbour.

It’s quickly become one of the most active groups I belong to, and though I can’t currently put faces to many of the names, I appreciate their caring posts.

I know our road is nothing special; others in the area have been doing the same, as well as joining in with national events such as ‘dance on your doorstep!’, busting out moves to S Club 7 in unison - from a safe distance of course.

It’s been the same on local Facebook groups, where vulnerable people who’ve requested help with shopping and so on have been inundated with offers from people they don’t know.

Social distancing and self-isolation has also forced families and friends to find new ways to connect.

The likes of Zoom and House Party have been an eye-opener, as the technophobes among us – I place myself firmly in this camp – attempt to get down with modern times, often with comedy results.

It’s been a relief to find that there are laughs to be had amid the misery. We need them more now than we ever have.