Ragtrader associate editor Imogen Bailey reveals her thoughts on Melbourne, after moving back to her home city last month. #MelbourneWeStandWithYou
When I told my Sydney colleagues that I was relocating back to Melbourne during lockdown, the reaction was one you’d expect.
‘What the? Why now?’ was the general sentiment.
My partner and I had moved up to Sydney two years prior to pursue our careers and had been enjoying living together in Sydney.
Prior to the pandemic, we were able to go between the two cities frequently, as many in the fashion industry do.
We would pop down there and our family and friends would pop up to see us throughout the year.
While we were physically apart from them, it never felt like we were separated.
But all that changed this year.
Flights: off the cards. Borders: closed. Events: cancelled. Everyone: stay home.
So we did, and slowly the separation began to seep in.
With nothing to do and nothing to look forward to, my motivation to put in effort slipped away.
The unconscious pressure of navigating a vastly disrupted life without having anything to help ease the stress led me to thinking, ‘why bother? What’s the point of making an effort?’
My brain became fatigued and sluggish and life just became a whole lot of ‘meh.’
The weeks blurred into one, simultaneously taking years to pass while also flying by, and everything that I previously cared about I couldn’t care less about anymore.
I was just trying to make it through the day without cracking into the wine at 12pm – although some days that was necessary.
I sought out a counsellor to help me make sense of what the hell was going on with my moods and how that was impacting my actions.
And as the weeks went on, the fog began to lift and I was able to carve out a routine in this ‘new normal’ that gave me a sense of control back.
As NSW reopened and COVID-safe life returned to shops, cafes and bars, so did my sense of optimism.
But I couldn’t shake that deep feeling of separation from my loved ones.
I desperately wanted to be back with them, even if it meant that I could only see them from a 1.5m distance away.
COVID has forced everyone, business or individual, to reassess what’s important.
To me, that’s my family and close friends.
So we packed up and came home, knowing that Melbourne is still in the thick of it.
Every Melbournian is still working to keep a lid on the stress while trying to maintain a sense of normality in a totally upside-down environment.
The sluggish feeling sits in the air as we tune into the daily press conference to hear if we can go back to normal yet.
The endurance of the state is getting to the end of its tether and its citizens are desperate to find meaning in their days again.
Those three or so weeks of freedom between lockdowns was cruelly snatched away, making it all the more hard to go back into isolation.
The taste of normality, of life getting back on track proves to be bittersweet as we know what we’re missing out on.
But we’re so close to the end now.
I am so proud of how Melbournians have rallied together to drive the numbers down, despite it being so bloody hard to go back into lockdown.
Retailers, you’re next to reopen and I know you’re so ready for it.
It has been an honour to watch and report on how resilient (I know, it’s an overused word) and innovative (another one) you have all been.
You’ve been knocked down and kicked in the teeth, yet you have valiantly risen to the occasion with solutions in place.
You’ve battled the fatigue and sluggishness to continue to serve your customers and you should be damn proud of that.
You’ve made sense of a totally nonsensical situation.
If you ask me, I think you deserve to crack into the wine at 12pm once this is all behind us.