The end of the world

That’s how the REM song went and that’s what the Mayans predicted for 2012. You remember that, don’t you? We were all on the edge of our seats on December 21, 2011. Waiting for the end of the world, waiting for the meteors, earthquakes, tsunamis for the end of our world.

But Visualize for me REM shaking a finger at the Mayans for forgetting to include the line “as we know it!”

Thanks to Hollywood, we imagined the end of the world would look like chaos, natural disasters and complete devastation. But the words “as we know it” are crucial to truly understanding the year 2020.

The Mayan prediction for the end of the world was to happen during the year of 2012. There is however one thing everyone forgot to figure into the end of the world due date, the Gregorian Calendar. The calendar was created in 1582 to try to reflect the time it takes the earth to orbit the sun. The number of days lost because of the shift to the new calendar was 11 days, and its been 268 years, or a difference of 2, 948 days, or roughly 8 years.

Fortunately, June 21st came and went. However, this entire year has been filled with huge changes and strange developments. The biggest being the transformation, or mutation of our society due to COVID 19.

Today, we live in a society that watches numbers behind masks, six feet apart. And sometimes we can’t always go into stores or restaurants or buildings.

Masks have now become a staple as common as your car keys. Its something you must have with you. More and more it is becoming a mandate, almost a law. Service can be refused. Entrance can be refused.

Remember last year when we could just walk into a Target, get what we need and check out? Now shopping looks like stickers on the floors with reminders to stay 6 feet apart. Plastic dividers are at checkouts. A minimum number of people allowed inside or dining. Low or no supply of household items especially disinfectants, and paper products., like toilet paper.

This is just a small list of changes, there still are many more restrictions and changes like the school systems going virtual.

If you really look around the world or your town you can really see how the world of 2019 has ended and is replaced with the new world of 2020.