We can be sure of the following based on last Friday’s HMS Town Hall meeting:

• We will not be back on campus anytime soon.
• When we do go back, we will be practicing social distancing (specifics to be determined by the university committee).
• All will be asked to wear face coverings or masks in the workplace.
• The way we work onsite will not be the same as it was.

At the same time, there is a lot we don’t know yet and are being worked on through a variety of committee structures:

• Answers to the many questions regarding Human Resources are still being worked out at university and school levels.
• The economic impact of the shut-down, especially the “mothballing” of research is being modeled, but not finalized.
• The budget implications for Countway and other HMS units is unknown and being modeled with various scenarios. No decisions have been made for the FY21 budget.

There are many unknowns, as well as uncertainty and anxiety as a result of not knowing. As we enter the last week in April, we are in the long goodbye.

How do we cope with the long goodbye? We need to be open-minded about the new relationships we will have with Countway, HMS, and each other (practicing social honoring). I know this will be difficult. Many of you have a long work history with HMS and Countway, with fond memories and traditions of how things used to be. We need to make new rituals with each other and the community. We also need to have some fun. We need to laugh at ourselves and be forgiving of each other. We need to cut each other some slack, and show compassion. Together, we will get through the long goodbye by making new relationships with each other and our community, by practicing social honoring and by enjoying a few laughs.

Elaine